


Guide and Guard

by Nutella0Mutt



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Sentinels & Guides, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Aphrodisiacs, Coping Mechanisms, Emotional bonding, Guide!Shiro, Hurt/Comfort, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith is 17, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Lance is 17, M/M, Mental bonding, Mindscapes, Multi, Sentinel AU, Sentinel!Lance, Sentinel/Guide, Sentinel/Guide Bonding, Shiro is 22, Shiro is a Mess, Slow Burn, Soulmates, Spirit Animals, also, are tags, but i prefer to call them - Freeform, don't forget him, guardian spirits, mental worlds, mentions of torture, mindspace, trust me its gonna be great
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-25
Updated: 2018-08-15
Packaged: 2018-09-11 23:09:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 17
Words: 63,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9039827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nutella0Mutt/pseuds/Nutella0Mutt
Summary: The average person becomes aware of their abilities at age 14.At 9 years old, Lance is one of the youngest people with the hyperacute sensory ability (or HyperSens) ever tested at the Altean Facility. No one is more surprised than him when the results come back positive for the Sentinel gene. But after 8 long years of Sentinel training at the Facility, the instructors complain that he is unfit to match. The teachers are done wasting their time on him.Shiro is the oldest HyperSens ever admitted to the Facility. He unknowingly unlocked his abilities in the accident that killed his best friend when he was 16. He tests positive for the Guide gene after nearly a year of recovery, but his trauma affects his ability to pair with Sentinels, and he is officially labeled as "Unmatchable." Everyone is shocked when the two match and they have one of the most powerful bonds known. But despite their fantastic success rate and high scores, Lance and Shiro feel like there is a gap between them. Just enough room for another. If only they had figured out that last part sooner.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Duality: First Contact](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8346163) by [Mythril (fantacination)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fantacination/pseuds/Mythril). 



> Blame Mythril for this. I read their Sentinel AU last night, and was so bloody inspired I busted this out 5 hours later. At 5:30 AM I forced myself to go to bed because I couldn't see straight anymore. And that's the glorious birth of this story. A midnight writing frenzy. It was so determined to exist I just had to give in, despite being in the middle of writing my huge chronicle. I promise I'm working on that one, too.
> 
> Hope you like it okay. Not beta'd, there are typos I promise. 
> 
> I love Sentinel AUs with a dying passion so I hope y'all like this take on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: WE HAVE A COVER! :D :D :D  
> A commission by the amazing, incredible, wonderful, lovely, awesome, talented [drisrt](http://drisrt.tumblr.com/)!!! PLEASE CHECK OUT HER TUMBLR!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST HER ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/168208683356/a-commission-by-the-amazing-incredible)  
> 
> 
>  
> 
>   
> 
> 
> THIS PIC MAKES MY FIC SEEM WAY MORE AWESOME THAN IT IS SORRY XD

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

When Lance and Shiro first meet, they already resent each other. Well, they don't really dislike each other, but they hold a grudge against the other’s affiliation.

Lance had been registered at the Facility at the young age of 9. He began showing signs of hyperacute sensory ability, or HyperSens, and as per the rules, his family had registered him in an attempt to guide his development. Anyone who is suspected of having HyperSens are taken to the Facility for testing. If they past the initial HyperSens test, then Facility personnel test for either the Sentinel genes or the Guide genes.

Sentinels have phenomenal sensory abilities. They can control the five senses to incredible levels. For example, by focusing on sight, they can see microscopic things at amazing magnification, or see things perfectly from miles away. Sentinels can choose to have night vision, or infrared, or any other possibility, as long as they have the training on what thoughts are needed to trigger the change. While Sentinels were historically perceived as elite warriors, nowadays they are sought after by the government for specialized jobs like firefighting, the coast guard, the military, the intelligence program, and the police department. But as the universal law of equivalent exchange goes, everything comes at a price. Poorly-trained Sentinels can get lost in their powers. The intense internal focus needed to manipulate changes in their senses means they may be unaware of outside events, be unable to return to the normal state, and are vulnerable to attacks. That is why Guides exist to keep Sentinels from going “too deep” and to protect them during their vulnerable times of intense internal focus.

Guides are empaths who also go through rigorous training on how to be aware of the mental and emotional state of their Sentinel, how to read the emotions of potential nearby threats, and how to guide the Sentinel into and out of the sensory trances. But the Guide is susceptible to emotional overload, as guiding is very draining to poorly-trained Guides, and any high emotions from the local environment can interrupt their focus. Also, if their Sentinel ever experiences extreme emotions or mental duress, the Guides feel them twice as hard. The Altean HyperSens Facility is famous for discovering the benefits of shields, and launched the shield training program that teaches Guides how to build mental shield against emotional overload. The idea is that Guides can shield themselves from unpleasant emotions they pick up, allowing them to focus during the guiding process, or as a life-saving maneuver in crisis situations, like if their Sentinel goes out of control or is killed.

Sentinels typically are more focused, calmer, and motivated to work harder than regular people. Guides tend to be gentler, more expressive, and extremely loyal. The two are normally matched for life, and the media likes to overly-romanticize this partnership into the idea of soulmates. Intimate and romantic relationships are very common between HyperSens pairs, but platonic or co-working relationships are just as prevalent, and those individuals can have very rewarding lives married to regular, non HyperSens people.

Given his carefree personality and his ability to diffuse any tense situation with humor, nobody was more shocked than Lance himself when the test came back positive for the Sentinel ability at 9 years old. By age 12, Lance already had a reputation for not taking things seriously and intentionally getting into trouble. By 16 it was believed that Lance was a failure of a Sentinel. It was well known that he couldn’t focus, he didn’t bother training his mind or his body for the physically demanding working of being a Sentinel, and he resisted partnering up with any Guide. The instructors, becoming increasingly frustrated by Lance’s antics, were harsher on Lance when his training came up. They lost patience easily and were quick to dish out punishment. They theorized that because his personality was so close to that of a Guide’s, he could never be compatible with one. Everyone could tell when Lance was training, because the arguing and complaints could be heard throughout the Facility, and always ended with Lance in the disciplinary ward. Anyone who asked Lance why he resisted the training would be told that since he was already a failure, why should he bother trying?

Shiro, on the other hand, was one of the late-bloomers. He did not discover his ability until 16, and it was completely by accident. It happened when his best friend’s house had been set on fire in an arson attack by an underground anti-HyperSens organization. A number of these secret groups existed in the state of Altea, the leader of all HyperSens research and training facilities nationwide, and it’s lead researcher Dr. Holt was a constant target. The Holt family was used to the hate mail and death threats and vandalism, but Dr. Holt and his wife were kind people and did not make a big show of increasing security. Instead, they went about their regular lives, patiently cleaning off their egged cars and ignoring the angry accusations as they went about their daily lives. On this fateful day, Shiro was over at the Holts to hang out with Matt after school.

It was a Friday, and Matt and Shiro had already gotten the snacks out and the picked out the movies and videogames they would be playing all weekend. They were upstairs in Matt’s room playing Halo, and initially, the sound of lasers and gunfire drowned out the sound of the molotovs shattering the windows downstairs. But once the smoke started to rise up, the reality of the situation had sunk in. Matt’s family was being burned alive. Shiro was frozen in fear. But watching Matt burst through his bedroom door broke Shiro out of his daze, and he ran desperately after Matt, who was yelling for his family. The smoke make it impossible to see, but Shiro was not going to let his friends die.

Shiro fell to the floor, closed his eyes, shut off his own emotions, and reached out for the Holts. Matt’s panic was stumbling down the stairs, Katie’s terror was down the hall, Mrs. Holt’s grief was by the front door, and Dr. Holt… was not present. Shiro opened his eyes, determined, and ran to grab Matt’s little sister from her room. Once he had dragged her downstairs, he pulled Mrs. Holt from where she was collapsed on the floor in her grief, and tugged them both out the front doors. Katie immediate launched herself at her mother, trembling in fear, watching their house burn in the flames. Shiro crouched in the grass of the front yard. He could see other neighbors running out of their houses, yelling on phones and trying to warn others to stay back. Mrs. Holt’s screaming for her husband brought Shiro back to the problem at hand. Dr. Holt was likely unconscious somewhere, and Matt was looking for him. Shiro honed onto Matt’s location and just as he’s preparing to run back into the house, Mrs. Holt’s hand stops him.

“Save them,” she had begged, and Shiro nodded.

Shiro sensed Matt’s _panic worry_ drop into _terror denial NO_ , and Shiro runs inside just as he hears the sirens. Shiro coughs and stumbles, finding Matt crouched on the ground next to the form of his father. Shiro crawls closer and sees the blood on the ground. Matt is cradling his father’s head, and there is a bullet hole straight through his forehead. Matt’s agony is BLINDING, and Shiro nearly passes out. He has no voice to call out with, but he grabs Matt’s arm, hard, and yanks him back towards the exit. Matt rips his arm away and pulls his father in closer. Shiro is choking, burning, coughing, Matt’s _grief anger_ is overwhelming, the panic of the neighbors flooding him, fear and shock making him dizzy and disoriented. Again, he yanks on Matt, and gets a punch to the face for his efforts. Parts of the house are falling, and beams thud around them. Wooden supports and metal pieces and burning debris. There is no more time. Fighting away unconsciousness, Shiro launches himself over Dr. Holt’s dead body and pins Matt to the ground. He can’t even see clearly anymore in the chaos of _everything_ , so he is not prepared for the burning pain that blossoms across his face. Matt swings again and screams as the red hot metal burns his hands and melts his skin. Shiro falls heavily and the sight of Matt burning alive next to his father is the last thing he sees.

Understandably, when Shiro arrives at the Facility one year later, he is a changed man. He lost his arm in that fire, suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns, and developed a fear for fire. Matt was dead before the firefighters had arrived, and no one was sure how Shiro managed to survive. Despite his shame and guilt for not being able to save Matt or his father, Shiro is hailed as a hero for rescuing the youngest Holt child, and her mother. After nearly a year of intensive surgeries, rehabilitation, multiples visits back and forth to the hospital, and physical therapy, when he’s finally discharged for good, Shiro just wants to go home and live a quiet life with this parents. However, not even a week later, a letter arrives requesting a HyperSens test. Shiro’s father was furious at the Facility, and questioned the Facility’s rights to claim HyperSens that develop due to accidents and trauma. All of Altea was in an uproar, but eventually the court rules that all HyperSens activity is under the jurisdiction of the Facility. This ruling upsets even more anti-HyperSens groups, but it is of little consequence to Shiro. His life now belongs to the Facility. Shiro tests positive for HyperSens, obviously, and he is registered as a Guide at the age of 17, the oldest HyperSens ever admitted.

The Facility has a policy. The average age HyperSens are discovered at is 14 years old. Due to this average the Facility has a three year training program. After the three years are up, the HyperSens are typically age 17, and ready to begin the final stage of training. At 17 years old, Sentinels and Guides are matched, and successful pairs start their pairs training, where they learn to read each other’s unique energies and endure training simulations that mimic the government jobs. The highest ranking pairs get the most important (and coolest) jobs, such as intelligence collection (international spies) and infiltration experts (ninjas). Lower scoring pairs get the next ones like detectives and coast guard, after that are jobs like highway patrol and police, and the lowest scoring are parking violation officers and security guards. So the HyperSens of the Facility worked hard to earn high pair scores and get the cooler jobs. After a year of intensive pairs training, the successful pairs are usually 18 years old and ready to be handed over to the government for additional training in the job selected for them.

Unfortunately for kids like Lance, the ideal Facility set up does not always work. Being one of the youngest HyperSens ever found, Lance went through his 3 years of training from age 9-12, and then… had more training. And more classes. He is currently 17, bored out of his mind, and has suffered through 8 years of Facility training. But he knows he is not the only one stuck in a weird limbo due to his odd age. He has heard of Takashi Shirogane, oldest permitted HyperSens. Shiro was 17, went through his 3 years of training as is expected, and completed it at 20. The only problem was, according to Facility protocol, he should have already been paired and sent off to the government.

However, similar to Lance, Shiro does not match well with Sentinels. His focus is sometimes stronger than the Sentinels, pushing them harder to succeed, and he is not able to be the emotional counter the Sentinels need. The other Sentinels complain of feelings of depression and sadness, and are unhappy when he is unable to explain his emotional readings. Shiro can read and feel emotions very well. He just, can’t put those feelings into words and provide an explanation. One particular scenario was to find a target in a crowd. The Sentinel is tasked to identify either the smell or the voice of the target, and the Guide is supposed to run emotional interference, scanning the crowd for suspicious or threatening emotions from other hostiles hidden in the crowd. Shiro could read incoming threats, but instead of communicating, he just acted, pulling the Sentinel out of harm’s way, but disrupting the focus of the Sentinel.

Facility instructors propose that Shiro would benefit from a Sentinel that had some understanding of emotions, someone who can read the emotions directly from Shiro without him having to verbalize or translate them, but given that Sentinels do not have that ability, Shiro is labeled as “Unmatchable” and therefore “Not cleared for government work.” So the Facility, instead of changing it’s rules about the age of work, made an exception. In most regards, Shiro is the perfect Guide. His scores are always impeccably high, his emotional stability outranking his peers, and is an excellent teacher to other Guides. So the Facility “hires” him as a mentor, to support the younger Guides and be their role model. He spends the next three years “working,” just like is expected after training. But the Facility still sends Shiro to the matching each year, as policy, despite not ever matching with anyone.

So when the day of Lance’s matching comes, both Lance and Shiro are over it before it even begins. The Facility discovered early on that HyperSens run off pheromones. High pheromone levels mean a better chance of successful matching, and HyperSens living together tend to sync pheromone cycles. So the Facility watches for the day when the Sentinels and Guide are both running high, and begins the matching.

There are two matches that happen. First is all the freshly graduated 17 year old HyperSens. The Guides sit on one side, and Sentinels enter the room and choose the Guide that seems to call to them. Anyone that matches is pulled from the room, and the two move into pair dorms. There’s a month-long time frame where the match deepens into a permanent bond, and dorms give the pairs the privacy to develop the bond until the next round of training starts.

The second matching includes the unmatches (rejects) from the 17 year old group, and then the previous unmatches (again, rejects) from the previous years. Unmatched HyperSens that are still viable matches can either stay at the Facility, or ask to be transferred to another one in hopes of a better match. Lance has heard it involves a fancy bit of DNA dating. They scan your specs and cross-reference to all the other Facilities until they find a potential match, then send you off.

In this year’s match, there are sixteen Sentinels including him, all the age of 17. Guides are typically less common and this year there’s only nine of them.  Lance is herded into the big white room with the other Sentinels, and across the room sit the Guides on stools in a row. Once all the Sentinels are in the room, the doors close with a click behind him, and the matching begins. Some of the Sentinels in front of him move boldly forward to the Guides. The rest are more timid, meandering around the room and expanding their senses to seek the appealing energies of the Guides.

Lance is lucky he’s even been allowed to participate in the match. It’s not that he wants a match, he just wants out. He knows every instructor was against his participation in the match, but Facility rules are law. He is a 17 year old Sentinel, freshly graduated, and by all rights he should be in this match just like everyone else. To be honest, Lance has been waiting for this day. All he has to do is chill in a corner, and after the two matches are up, he’ll ask for a transfer. Lance knows his disciplinary record will go with him to the other Facility, but at least he won’t have to look at the smug faces of the instructors here. Eight years here is five years TOO LONG dealing with these same smug faces.

He sighs, bored, and backs into the corner of the room. As he moves he watches a Sentinel take the hand of a lovely young Guide. They stare into each other’s eyes, and tune out the rest of the world. Lance tries not to gag. A couple problematic Sentinels eye Lance, and laugh quietly as they move closer to the Guides like lions on a hunt. Another pair matches off, and Lance crosses his arms and leans against the wall. It’s not that the Guides don’t smell nice. They do. Soft and calming. But just, not his match. One of Lance’s kinda-friends gets matched to a Guide that’s also been nice to him, so Lance smiles as the two boys blush and hold hands. Ah, cute. With three Guides out, Lance can feel the energy shift. It seems all the natural matches have happened.

The Facility hasn’t really mentioned it, but some Sentinels can “force” a match. It’s not as bad as it sounds, but the Sentinels determined to get a particular Guide can fake their energy enough to trick the Guides into feeling a connection to them. It’s technically supposed to be a failsafe in case of emergencies, like an out of control Guide in immediate danger of mental damage. The scenario was that the Guide’s Sentinel had been shot. Lovely image, but the multiplied emotions of the last few seconds of the Sentinel’s life, combined with the grief of the loss and shock of the death, especially with bonded pairs, will drive the Guide insane. Rather than watch that Guide suffer, a nearby Sentinel can tweak pheromones and energies just enough to give the Guide the illusion of still being in a bond as a form of emotional support, and calm the Guide down until the Guide can be sedated and put into bonding rehabilitation. Lance hasn’t had the classes on what bond rehabilitation is, yet, since that’s not crucial the kids who aren’t even matched yet, but it doesn’t sound pleasant.

Unfortunately, the reality is that Sentinels who want a particular Guide may confuse the Guide into feeling safe and comfortable as they would in a true match, even if there isn’t a true connection. Some Guides are sought after for beauty or skill, because matching is your only way out of the Facility. If you can pick your own significant other, get out, and be guaranteed a job, well then hey, you've played the system.

Lance could never do that to someone else. So better to just not be bonded. Why force someone who doesn’t even like him into bonding? The slimy lion guys “match” off with three lovely girls, and then there’s just three left. A Sentinel girl with closed eyes tentatively walks towards another girl, stops in front, then opens her eyes. She looks surprised, but the Guide gently reaches out her hand, and they smile.

Two Guides left, and nine Sentinels. A door on the Guide wall opens. The matched pairs get up and leave. Round two of matching starts when the Sentinel doors open and five more Sentinels walk in. Then in step three Guides. These are what Lance likes to call the rejects from previous matchings, or DNA dates from other Facilities. They look only about a year older than Lance. The Guides come in and sit quietly, joining the two already sitting… except one. It’s Shiro. 22 years old, giant, and sticking out like a sore thumb. Lance has seen him in passing, but they’ve never trained together. Two Sentinels immediately walk to the new Guides, but Lance has frozen. Even from his corner of the room, a huge sense of peace washes over him. There’s a nudge at his tough guy exterior, revealing the anxiety and loneliness underneath. Ah. That. Lance closes his eyes and curls in on himself. Damn this perceptive Guide. He is thankful at the least the Guide doesn’t noisily label his emotions, just gently reminds him they’re there.

Lance takes a deep breath and tries to calm down. There’s another nudge. The Guide is trying to encourage him. Lance feels the desire to prove people wrong. To show the world what he’s made of. To deny being called a failure. Lance wants to scoff at that, but all he manages is a half-sob. No can do, that dream died five years ago. The scent of rain and pine trees fills his nose. Smells that he’s missed so much being cooped up here in this hellish Facility. Trapped.

The sound of footsteps shock Lance into opening his eyes. Shiro is standing right in front of him. He’s tall, but his eyes are kind, gentle, soft. He smells like all the things Lance misses, and when Lance meets his eyes he sees tears falling from them.

Lance is vaguely aware that the other people in the room are frozen. Guides do not approach Sentinels. There’s no rule against it, it just isn’t done. Call it habit or tradition or whatever.

But this Guide, his Guide, Lance realizes numbly, just chose HIM.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Shiro can’t help it. He really can’t. And it’s not even his bleeding heart for the poor, sad, unwanted, beat up ones. It’s his soul reaching out. How has he never met him before now? Sure, he’s heard of Lance, is aware of his reputation. Knows he’s the youngest HyperSens ever detected. But Shiro has never had the opportunity to work with him. To feel this.

And despite all the awful feelings he’s getting from his Sentinel, ( _loneliness, anxiety, sadness, futility, resignation, longing)_ he’s also feeling the spirit pounding strong, hidden just below the surface, ( _determination, will, strength, perseverance). I will not be limited by them. I am better than they say. I will prove them wrong. I won’t be held back by their opinions._

He does not pick up any of the slimy feelings of dishonesty. No lies here. Just a wounded heart. Shiro tries to tell himself not to cry. He’s not sure he succeeds.

Shiro is drawn to Lance. Their energy levels sync. The power of his emotions. The openness and vulnerability of his heart. His shielded mind. Defensive, but full of so much passion it's almost blinding. He does not feel like the awkward, uncertain ones. Not like the ones without direction. Not like the self-centered ones. There’s no ulterior motive here.

And Shiro, strangely enough, feels safe. Normally he’s the one oozing that reassurance of safety and security, but Shiro knows Lance will be loyal to him. Care for him with everything he’s got. Finally, someone who’s just as genuine as Shiro is.

His feet are moving before he even registers. He watches his Sentinel open his eyes in confusion, uncertainty, and with a tiny light of hope. They're gonna be great together. He can already tell.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Hey Lance.”

Oh. That’s a nice sound. His voice. Strong. Sure. He’s even bigger up close. He takes up so much space. Broad shoulders and strong arms. A handsome face, a big heart, and charisma to seal the deal. He’s heard about Shiro, but seeing and experiencing him this close is a whole ‘nother thing. And he’s crying, good lord. Lance can feel his own emotions through the feedback. Shiro is crying for him, because Lance has run out of tears.

“H-uh-hey Shiro.” Oh god he does not deserve this man.

“You know what this means, right?"

Lance pauses. It’s almost like a dream come true to him, but is this what Shiro wants?

“But are you sure, Shiro?”

The question seems to catch Shiro off guard. Lance can feel Shiro try for a convincing tone, but he falls short.

“I'm pretty sure?”

“Haha, that's reassuring. Yeah, let's try that again. Are sure you want to be stuck with me? I’m not going to force you to match. You don’t have to do me any favors. I know I'm not anyone’s first pick so...”

He trails off. Shiro rolls his eyes and lifts his arm.

“Lance, I have a prosthetic arm, a ruined face, I’m too old, and I’m still haunted by the accident six years ago. I’m really not in any position to complain. But to be honest, I like the way you look, you look perfect.”

Psh. Lance rolls his eyes. Shiro feels his embarrassment and soft disbelief.

“Can I?”

Shiro reaches out a hand, waiting for Lance to accept. He does and Shiro entwines their fingers together. Lance feels himself getting pulled away. He’s transported to the most peaceful place in the world. He’s on top of a mountain surrounded by a huge forest and the sun is just starting to set. The temperature is perfect. Sunny, but cool. There’s the smell of rain and wet trees, fresh earth, and a bird calls…

Shiro gives Lance’s hand a squeeze, and that starts to pull him back from his paradise.

The opening doors seem to jar Lance completely from his trance, and he steps back from Shiro as Facility personnel approach. Looks like the second matching just finished. Lance suddenly panics, and Shiro gives him a quick side look, wondering if he should see the personnel as potential threats. Before just a few minutes ago, Shiro would have been shocked at his ability to so quickly regard previous allies as enemies. But he’s got Lance now, and anyone who is a threat to Lance is his opponent.

Shiro pings a questioning thought to Lance, who subtlety shakes his head. Stand down.

The matched pairs are herded out the Guide doors, and the unmatched go back to the Sentinel doors. Shiro and Lance join the dozen or so matched pairs. The duo gets a number of surprised looks and shocked faces. Shiro picks up on many feelings of disbelief, shock, and suspicion thrown towards them. He unconsciously moves closer to Lance. When their arms brush, Lance absentmindedly finds Shiro's hand and holds tight.

For better or for worse, they are in this together.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we go. Chapter one.  
> Let me know how you liked it. ♡


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro and Lance get to know each other, Shiro learns some disturbing news, and they have their first mission together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! I can't believe how many people liked the first chapter. It was all explanation and hardly any interaction.  
> Thank you to everyone who left a comment!
> 
> Now starts the good stuff.  
> Again, there's typos. It takes me a while to find them, so sorry!
> 
> ☆ ♡ ☆ ♡

“Well, congratulations Sentinels, Guides.” The head of the Facility enters the room. Everyone calls him Mr. Sendak. Except Lance. He has a smile that rubs Lance the wrong way. Whenever Lance was getting stricter punishments or over-the-top disciplinary consequences, Sendak seemed to turn a blind eye. Actually, Sendak was almost always present or involved. Hence the reason why Lance has no love for Sendak, and it seems like the feeling is mutual. But it doesn’t matter now. Things have changed.

“Today begins the new stage of your lives. You are now matched. Please line up by the doors in an orderly fashion so your wristbands can be scanned to make the matches official, and listen for your new dorm rooms.”

Shiro pulls Lance over to line up by Mr. Coran. Everyone likes Mr. Coran. He is warm, funny, and a wonderful counter to rest of the hardfaced, strict Facility instructors. When the two make it to the front, Mr. Coran greets them with a smile, not making a big fuss about the two “Unmatchables” being paired.

“I’m happy for you both. Let me scan your wrists, there we go, and you two get… one sec, dorm #117. Reading materials and meals will be delivered shortly.”

Personnel point them down the hall to the dorms #100-120, and when they find their room Lance scans his wristband by the panel. The electric lock beeps green and the Lance pushes the door open.They enter and stop. Apparently becoming a matched pair comes with serious perks. They’ve certainly moved up in life.

“Wow,” Shiro breathes. Lance can’t help but agree. He realizes their hands are still linked, and pulls away.

“Okay, if I knew getting matched meant a serious upgrade, I would've been a lot more excited about it.”

The room is luxury compared to the barracks-style housing for the younger, unmatched ones.

Lance struts forward and throws himself down on the couch. There's a table and chairs by the door, for meals, then further in is a sitting area with some chairs, the couch Lance is occupying, a book case, and an honest to goodness television. There’s a desk with a techpad (omg!) and next to the desk is a stack of games (OMG)! Next to the couch are two doors. One is for the bathroom and the other is opened to reveal the bedroom. The bed is not very big, but it’s not the bunks they’ve been sleeping on since forever. Lance can tell Shiro is excited about the bed. He’s sure he would be, too, if he was as big as Shiro. Lance barely fit the bunks himself, so he has no idea how Shiro managed.

“The floor mostly,” Shiro answers his unspoken question. Lance’s jaw drops. Shiro raises an eyebrow with a smile, and Lance cannot tell if he is serious or not.

Lance wiggles on the couch to adjust, then sprawls as Shiro grabs the techpad curiously. Then he walks over to the couch and lifts Lance’s leg so he can sit down. Lance is about to apologize and sit up, but Shiro simply lowers the leg in his lap and places a warm hand on his ankle. Lance tries not to blush.

“Alright Lance, now let’s talk.”

He would really rather not, since he has an idea he knows what Shiro is hinting at, so he deflects.

“Sure. Um, my favorite color is blue, my favorite place used to be the beach, but it’s been awhile, my favorite food here is the stuff they try to pass off as ice cream...um, what else…”

“Lance.”

As much as Lance really likes the way his name sounds coming from Shiro, the hint of seriousness makes him nervous. Shiro nudges and he relents with a sigh. He lets his defensiveness fall away.

Shiro seems pleased. “Thank you. Now what was that earlier? You were upset when the personnel approached. Why?”

Damn this observant Guide. “I uh, didn’t realize the matching was over. I didn’t want to match, so the reminder that it was over was a little shocking, and I panicked.”

Shiro’s eyes go wide, and Lance feels his distress “Wait, what? Why didn’t you want a bond? Do we need to terminate?”

Lance is quick to reassure Shiro, who looks really guilty. “No no it’s fine. I didn’t WANT one originally. I was hoping to get transferred.”

Shiro still has an upset look on his face, so Lance puts a hand on the one covering his ankle.

“I wasn’t expecting to find someone like you. I’m sure you realized there were only a few Guides left. And none of them would have been a good match. If I got transferred, at least I would be out of here. I’m really sick of these instructors. They have it out for me.”

“I’m sure they mean well, Lance. They’re just not used to someone like you. You’re special. But I’m glad I found you.”

He’s sure it’s not intentional, but Lance is very aware of the intense look Shiro is giving him. Like Shiro believes Lance is the best thing to ever happen to him. He feels warm, and Lance belatedly realizes they are still touching. Skin to skin contact is the best way to directly send your thoughts to another.

Shiro smiles, knowingly. “Lance, you ARE the best thing to ever happen to me.”

Lance rolls his eyes so dramatically it actually hurts. “It’s been maybe 30 minutes Shiro.”

“Yup. And it’s been the best 30 minutes of my life.”

“You cannot be serious.”

“Really! Without you I’d be teaching Guides how to not be useless like me, and never bond with anyone, and I’d never get out of the Facility, Lance. So yes, you are the best thing that’s happened to me.”

Lance has no words. For once. So he stares at Shiro in disbelief, and when the knock sounds on the door he jumps up and rushes over.

It’s a Facility worker. Lance lets him in and he places the items on the table by the door. He points the things out.

“Here’s the reading material and meals. We expect the assignment to be done by the end of the four weeks. Buzz if you need anything. Happy bonding.”

The Facility worker smiles and shuts the door behind him.

Awesome. Room service for a whole month! “Come get some food, big guy. Smells great.”

The couch squeaks as Shiro gets up, and he palms the books as Lance sets the food out.

“The Characteristics of Bonds, How to Bond, What to Expect when Bonding, and Bond Management. Seems like good stuff. Let’s get started on the homework after dinner.” He sits and pops a chip in his mouth as he opens the first book.

“Ugh, fine dad.”

Shiro chokes on the chip.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Bonds are the permanent link between a matched Sentinel and Guide. Some people compare the bond to a marriage. Both parties work hard to ensure the health and wellbeing of the other, and they are committed and loyal. Bonds can take a number of different forms, but they should all be based on equality and respect. Communication and honesty are the key to long, happy, and successful bonds.” Shiro puts the book down and grabs a highlighter, looking up at Lance when he’s ready.

“Alright, highlight that first sentence. Then underline the parts about respect and that stuff. The good things to have.” Lance is typing notes on the techpad.

“I’ll add the note about bond = marriage. It’s a good comparison.” Lance nods and corrects a typo as Shiro scribbles the sentence in the margin.

It’s after dinner and they’ve shoved the food plates to the side to clear the table. Despite sounding reluctant at first, Lance jumps in and proposes they tag team the assignment. They need to read the books and write an essay on bond pairs. If they could take notes and answer the essay prompt while reading, that’s less work they have to do later. Shiro volunteered to read aloud and highlight key points, and Lance jots notes down in each of the sections the essay requires. Then they can look in the book for additional info, but don’t need to re-read it to write the essay.

The plan is working out beautifully, and they wind up finishing the first book and writing the rough draft. The intro book covers all the basic about bonds, but when the other books go into more detail, Lance will add to the other sections. But it’s a great start. Lance is facedown on the couch a few hours later, and Shiro feels very accomplished as he cleans up the work off the table and moves it to the desk.

“I’m really proud of you Lance, we already read the first book and it hasn’t even been a day. You’re taking this pretty seriously, huh?”

Shiro picks up a Lance leg again and sits down. The leg is back in his lap. Lance moves his head to the side so Shiro can hear him.

“Believe it or not, I did really well the first three years. But once I graduated the normal education, they were scrambling to find work for me to do. Training got a lot harder and a lot more...unnecessary.”

That throws Shiro for a loop. He hadn’t thought about how Lance spent those extra five years. “Unnecessary?”

“Yeah. Cleaning things and tasks way too advanced for me. There was some counter intelligence and weapon training. Really hard mental exercises. Pretty brutal workouts. It wasn’t much fun anymore, so I stopped taking it seriously. I already had passed the normal classes so this was just busy work.”

Shiro feels dread creeping in. “What?”

Counter intelligence. Like, how to resist giving any information? Training against torture? How do you even train for that without hurting anyone?!

“Yeah. And when I didn’t do their tasks I was punished. That was even less fun. Missed meals and sometimes beatings. The isolation was probably the worse, though.” Lance shrugs and shoves his head back in the pillow, clearly unbothered by the discussion. Shiro feels like throwing up. He shakes Lance.

“Lance! Get up!”

Lance detangles himself from the couch and sits up, eyeing Shiro warily. “What? What’s up? You okay?”

Shiro’s face is pale. His scar is so pink. His eyes are wide and Lance is hit by a wave of...something.

“Am I- Lance. Are YOU okay?”

“Uh, yeah, why?”

Shiro shakes his head and turns to grip Lance’s shoulders.

“That...it’s...how do you think punishments happen?

Lance gives him another look. “Like I said, isolation, skipped meals-”

“No.”

It’s clearly not registering. Lance tilts his head in confusion, and a frown begins to form. Shiro takes a deep breath.

“Lance. The standard disciplinary action in the Altean HyperSens Facility is to write a formal apology explaining what you did wrong. That’s it. No...no b-beatings or whatever.”

Lance is quiet for a while. Shiro can’t read anything from him. Finally, Lance blinks, and smiles. It’s fake.

“Well, that explains a lot.”

Shiro pulls him in for a hug and doesn’t let go for a long, long time.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

One week later, Lance remembers that he had forgotten to ask exactly why Shiro was labeled “Unmatchable.” However, it becomes glaringly obvious in their first mission together. Sure, they have a growing bond, but it certainly takes some hard work on his part. Good thing Shiro is worth it.

Today’s simulation just basic stuff. Sentinel-focused training in the guise of a rescue mission. It’s just the two of them on an inflatable raft, and they need to find the victim who is floating somewhere in the middle of the ocean before they drown. Lance takes the lead on this mission because they are way too far away for Shiro to feel any emotional distress. In situations like these, Lance will focus on his vision while Shiro helps him tune out his other senses. Once Lance hones in on their location, they will paddle as quickly as they can for the rescue. Lance gets graded on how fast he finds them, Shiro gets graded on his guiding and filtering, and they both are scored on their physical speed.

Of course, the Facility does not like to make things easy. When Lance and Shiro open their eyes, they are floating in the middle of a vast ocean with the hot sun burning overhead, and a voice over the loudspeaker announces RESCUE THE VICTIM.

Being able to interpret the situation and decide on the appropriate response is typically the Guide’s job, but Lance is not going to sit around while Shiro wastes time thinking.

As soon as the announcement ends, he shouts to Shiro over the sound of the waves without turning to look.

“I’m turning up vision. Mute the others!”

Lance visualizes himself as a eagle, able to see the tiniest detail from two miles away. He automatically corrects the refractive errors and begins scanning. His field of vision slowly zooms in as he feels Shiro guiding the others back. Shiro takes Lance’s image of the eagle and runs with it, telling Lance he doesn’t need to hear or taste or feel or smell, his sharp eagle eyes are more than enough. Lance makes one full rotation and begins the next full circle.

And that’s when he begins to worry. The ocean is so big. How long has the person been floating here for? How tired are they? Will they even find them in time? And if they find him, what if they are too slow to paddle? What if they slip away from in front of them, like Matt?

Lance realizes with a start that these are not his emotions. He is panicked and anxious and there is no point. There’s no hope, there’s-

YES. Lance thinks strongly, losing some of his vision. YES THEY WILL FIND THEM.

Shiro gasps beside him, and Lance grips his shoulder tight. TRUST ME he pushes, he imagines shaking off the negative feeling like a wet dog, and shoves positivity and optimism at Shiro.

Lance is sweating. He feels ill, managing heightened vision while throwing emotions at Shiro and touching him. This is not how Sentinels work. But if this is what Shiro needs for them to work together, it’s what he’ll have to do.

They made a promise. To not give up. Lance will make sure they are successful. They were going to kick ass and prove people wrong.

Thankfully, Shiro pulls on the positivity and focuses Lance back on vision. He doesn’t drown out the emotions, which is what Lance really needs, but hey, they have a job to do.

Adjusting to scan again, Lance turns the other direction and does a full sweep. He sees a head about a mile away.

“There!” Lance points.

“Keep focus and let me do the rowing.”

Lance shakes his head and blindly grabs for the other paddle. They've got to work together. Lance follows Shiro’s lead, but quickly realizes he doesn’t have the strength to match Shiro’s pace. Subtly, he juices up his sense of touch to boost his muscles to fake his body into having more strength than it actually has. He’s fucking exhausted, but he’s not about to show any weakness.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Shiro isn’t stupid. He knows Lance is pushing himself. Being able to draw on multiple senses at once is very unusual, but Shiro doesn’t let himself feel surprised. He already feels guilty about nearly messing up their first mission, so he’s not going to argue and lets Lance have his way. When they get back, Shiro hopes he can talk some sense into Lance about health and safety, but right now he lets Lance’s optimism flow through him. They got this.

He throws himself into the rowing. A mile is fucking far, by the way, and his arms are shaking and painful when they finally, fucking finally pull up to the victim. It’s a child, of fucking course, and she slips under before Shiro can drag her into the boat. Shiro freezes in disbelief, but Lance is already in the water and pulling her towards the raft with her head on his shoulder.

Shiro pulls both of them up and begins CPR on the girl. After one round she coughs, and opens her blank eyes. Simulations never did quite catch the facial expressions. Nonetheless, he begins throwing calming feelings on the child as if she were really in shock and frightened.

A bell rings and the simulation ends. The ocean, salty air, burning sun, and the child in his arms melts away. He stumbles as his body tries to adjust to the lack of ocean sway, and shoots his arms out to catch Lance as he nearly collapses. Lance is hot to the touch, but it’s likely just from the simulated sun.

Three Facility personnel approach from the observation room. They are in the usual white coats, and two are holding techpads.

“Mission complete. The recovery of the victim was successful. Here are your individual reports.”

The Sentinel reviewer steps forward and reads off his pad.

“Sentinel, you promptly and accurately read the situation and developed the correct plan. You successfully initiated the task, and utilized the intended sense of sight as recommended. You managed to keep your Guide on task and utilized the sense of touch when you faltered physically. 5 out of 5.”

Lance can feel Shiro’s glare on him, but he can’t help but feel smug. He had a really good play today. Textbook perfect. So what if he pushed himself a little too hard?

The Guide reviewer steps forward to read her report.

“Guide, you promptly listened to your Sentinel and successfully guided him through the recommended sense while filtering out the other senses. You did falter and become a minor distraction briefly, but your Sentinel was able to quickly get you back on task. You also continued to drain him emotionally throughout the mission. After the objective was completed successfully you appropriately assisted the victim via emotions. 3.5 out of 5.”

Shiro goes numb. He didn’t realize he did that poorly. That score will not pass them. They need at least a 9.5. Right now they have an 8.5. Lance believed in them, but there’s nothing to be done about Shiro’s problems. This was why he was “Unmatchable.” He shuts his link to Lance before he tries to send any reassurances. Shiro doesn’t want Lance's fake smiles. He doesn’t notice Lance sway next to him when he closes the bond.

“Thank you reviewers. Now the mission report. Objective was completed successfully. 5 points. However, you beat the previous record by finishing 1.7 minutes faster than the listed time of 27.2 minutes. Your time was 25.5. Therefore you get 1 extra point for a total of 14.5 out of 15. That’s 96%. Congratulations. Now please head to the showers then the cafeteria before your down time.”

Shiro lets Lance drag him out of the simulation room. He’s too shocked to move.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Woohoo! Did you hear that?! 96%! That was so good!” Lance is ecstatic. What a great way to start off.

“But Lance, you saw me in there. I messed up! I nearly ruined everything. It doesn’t matter how well you do if I’m always keeping you down. I’m like an anchor. You’ll sink.”

Lance hums. Shiro does speak the truth. It was nearly a disaster. But Lance is strong, and very good at what his does despite his reputation. He’s got this.

“It’s alright Shiro. I got you. I’m your “guard,” remember. It’s my job to look out for you.”

The frown Shiro makes causes the skin around his scar to wrinkle a bit. It’s cute.

“You’re not supposed to “guard” my emotions, Lance.” Aww, he even does the finger quotations. “I need to learn to handle my own shit.”

Lance nearly trips and risks a look Shiro. It doesn’t seem like he even noticed. It’s only been a week and he’s already starting to talk like Lance. It’s so adorable. Lance is NOT going to say anything about it.

“Eh. I know you went through some crap, it’s okay. If you need to lean on me a bit that’s fine. We did really well today. Sure, you messed up a little, but our time was so good we got extra points.”

“One point, Lance, it was just one point.”

“That’s what I’m saying! And it was all we needed. One point! If we manage to beat all the times, then it won’t even matter if you stumble a bit. That’ll be our plan. Efficiency!”

They turn into the shower room and Shiro sighs.

“Simulations are not real life, Lance. There’s no extra points once we get out there.”

Lance claps him on the shoulder.

“Good thing we got a whole year, huh? Now let’s hurry up so we can make the first dinner switch.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's Chapter 2.  
> Please let me know what you think! ♡


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goddamn it, Lance. Stop giving Shiro gray hairs. He's got enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still completely shocked by all the kudos and comments. Holy CRAP!  
> You all rock so hard.
> 
> Sry for typos. It takes me a couple hours to find them, even after checking like crazy before posting.
> 
> Please speak up if something looks wrong or sounds confusing!!
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

After the showers they trade in their black form-fitting bodysuits for the more relaxed, standard Facility clothes. White t-shirts and cotton pants. Shiro really likes the mission gear. He has a feeling that if he could choose what he wore, he’d prefer the mission gear. Makes him feel like he’s ready for anything. Just one more year and he might get to choose what he wears again. One week ago he never thought he’d ever get the chance again. It’s the little things, Shiro thinks, that he misses. He can’t imagine Lance dealing with this for eight years.

They make it in time for the first of the dinner food right after lunch. It’s well-known to be the best time to eat. The food is hot and fresh, and hasn’t been sitting out for hours. There’s only a few people out and about in the mess hall. It appears that this time has been reserved for the newly-patched pairs with missions today. Hopefully after the next three weeks are up, they’ll get to eat with the other six or so pairs. But they won’t get to see the unmatched HyperSens again, unless something comes up. He can’t ever remember seeing matched pairs during their classes or down time, so they must be segregated for a reason. The introduction book hinted at increased territorial behaviors during the first year of bonding, so that might be it.

Shiro can see Lance is dragging a bit by the time they grab trays and find a seat. Shiro has loaded his tray, but Lance only grabbed a bowl of soup. Fortunately, he doesn’t complain when Shiro places a cup of water and a salad on his tray.

They eat for a bit in silence before Shiro speaks up. “Hey, are you alright?”

He get a shrugged shoulder in response. “Yeah, just a little tired. I'll go to bed early. How about yourself?”

Shiro knows a deflection when he hears one, but he doesn't push it. Given that he’s really only known Lance for 2 weeks and they just had their first mission together, he doesn't know his Sentinel’s limits yet. However, he also doesn’t want to be rude, so he will just keep an eye out. But if Lance falls asleep in his food Shiro will make sure he never hears the end of it. If he was really worried he could try to read Lance’s brain a bit to get a reading of his status, but that seems like an invasion of privacy. So Shiro lets it slide.

“I’m drained, too. Early bedtime sounds good. We can work on homework tomorrow since we did so good today.”

Lance’s face lights up with a smile. “Awesome!”

Shiro picks at his food and Lance enjoys his soup. The three problematic Sentinels enter the mess hall. Shiro is aware of the looks they’re getting, and can feel the hostile energy, but he tunes them out. He hopes it's not bothering Lance, but Shiro can feel him putting his mental shields up. Shiro will have to ask him about those later. Shields are supposed to be a Guide thing.

Suddenly their table gets banged, hard, and the peaceful mood is instantly shattered. The three “slimy guys,” as Lance dubbed them, (and Shiro had to agree the name worked) are leaning right above Lance and getting in his personal space. “Hey failure, you enjoying being looked after by the broken Guide?”

Lance's shoulder tense. Shiro looks up and gives the flattest, uninterested look he can manage. He wants to make it clear he's not impressed by their cheap comments. Shiro doesn’t want to start anything, but he also doesn’t want to fight Lance’s fight for him. He’ll read the situation and intervene if he needs to. He may be a Guide, but it’s obvious to everyone he’s one of, if not the best fighter in the Facility. After a traumatic incident like his, he could either talk about his feelings like a normal person, or obsessively train like crazy so he never felt that helpless again. Shiro obviously chose the latter.

Jerk #2 leans on Lance’s other side, partially blocking his view. “You know, the Sentinels are supposed to be the big strong ones. Looks like you’re so pathetic they gave you the weird one to make up for it.”

The lack of reaction seems to excite the bullies, and the third one leans in to whisper right in Lance’s ear. “I hope he doesn't make you cry. Heard all his PTSD is impossible to deal with. Wouldn't want you to accidentally kill yourself from all the grief.”

Okay, THAT one was over the top. Shiro puts his fork down to say as much, but an emotional spike from Lance makes him freeze.

A loud clatter interrupts the room. The sound of Lance’s spoon noisily dropping into the bowl makes everyone go quiet. Lance stands up, and the three boys lean back in surprise.

“It’s a pity you guys will never know what a true bonds feels like. I noticed your matches aren’t here. They having trouble connecting with your fake bond?”

The black-haired leader shoves Lance back away from the table. “Shut up, failure! We saw your mission scores. It must be nice getting such special treatment, since we all know someone like you doesn’t work hard at shit.”

He spits at Lance, and Shiro’s Sentinel has a hand around the kid’s throat in a second.

If Shiro weren’t suddenly worried about the very real chance of Lance doing some serious damage, he’d almost be impressed. That move is NOT part of the standard training curriculum. “Woah woah, Lance, calm down! He’s an ass, but just put him down. He’s not worth it!”

Out of the corner of his eye, Shiro sees the cook nervously talking on the walkie talkie. They’re sending in disciplinary personnel any second. Shiro is NOT letting Lance get into anymore trouble. Not with those freaky punishments with those freaky people who have it out for him. Lance still isn’t moving, and no one else is, either. The teen in his hold is choking, and clawing at Lance’s arm. Shiro doesn’t need to read the environment to feel the panic. So he focuses on Lance, sending confirmation, acknowledgement, the feeling that they’re above petty fights. They have to prove themselves. When that doesn’t work, Shiro releases his tight hold on his fear, and lets it trickle to Lance. Fear of the consequences, worry for his safety and well-being.

That seems to snap Lance out of it, and he drops the boy. The two others rush to their leader’s side as Lance leaves the room. Shiro gives a huge sigh of relief, and quickly busses their trays before jogging after Lance.

Given the hostile environment, Shiro will propose they order their meals next time. Sure it was good to get out and stretch their legs, since they’re only out for missions during the bonding time. But he's not risking Lance getting any disciplinary consequences due to bullies.

The next minutes are filled with a tense silence. As much as Lance likes to pretend the comments didn't affect him, Shiro can tell. Especially when Lance proposes they hit the gym. He’s clearly feeling inadequate compared to Shiro, but Shiro manages to herd him back to the dorm. Lance can no longer hold his shields up, and Shiro feels the exhaustion bleeding from him as they head back to their room.

Lance barely makes it. Actually, his knees give out in the hallway, and Shiro’s only warning is the sudden flicker of nothingness from Lance. Fortunately, Shiro catches him, guiding him to the floor. He’s too hot, nearly feverish, and Shiro frowns. It’s beginning to dawn on him that he and Lance have much in common, including selfless acts of heroism and sacrifice. Alright, if they don’t work on that, they're going to get themselves in trouble in the future.

When Lance comes to a few minutes later in Shiro’s arms, he still tries to fight it. “No, no it's fine, Shiro,” Lance pants. “Just, put me down.” Shiro breathes in deeply through his nose in an attempt to stay in control. He will not make a scene in the hallway. He can actually feel Lance trying to gather the strength to stand on his own.

Shiro keeps carrying him until they reach the room. He scans them in and places Lance on the bed. Shiro hands him a glass of water, and stares at him until Lance gets the hint and chugs the water.

Lance puts the glass down with an exhale. “Okay Shiro, spill it.”

Shiro does. “Lance, what were you THINKING?!”

“We did good,” Lance shrugs.

“Yes? That’s true. But you need to communicate with me. Tell me what you need and stop carrying the burden for both of us. You are overworking yourself.”

“It's ok.”

“No. You can't pass out after. That is officially too far. Think about the real world. We won’t get a nice quiet spot to recoup later; it might be the middle of a battle field. And I need to learn my own weaknesses or I’ll never get better, Lance. So please. We’re a pair now. Equality and respect, Remember?”

“Yeah yeah, sure.”

“Promise me you’ll speak up next time. You can still support me, but let me know when you’re pulling extra weight so I can sync with you. Please? You don’t need to do it all on your own, now.”

Lance closes his eyes as the raw feelings of concern and determination trickle to him. Shiro is serious about this. About him. Shiro’s hand rests on his forehead, pushing back his short bangs. Lance is a little choked up, so he softly conveys his emotions to Shiro.

He seems to understand what Lance can’t say out loud. “Of course I care about you. I always will. Stay here. I’ll get the next book and read it to you.” Lance wants to roll his eyes, but keeps them closed instead when he feels tears well up.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Ok, here’s the next book.  How to Bond.”

Shiro sits on bed next to Lance. He leans against the headboard. A frown forms on his face as he reads a bit and flips the page. “Oh… um, if you’re tired we can read this part later. It’s not exactly a story book.”

“Shiro, you just begged me to stop babying you and treat you as an equal, so do the same for me, K?”

“Yes, of course, you’re right. Ok here goes.”

Lance doesn’t need to be mentally linked to Shiro pick up on the second-hand embarrassment. He sends a quick feeling of support, hoping to help Shiro along. It seems to work.

“Skin contact is the best way to cement the bond. It can be as simple hand-holding throughout the day, and hugs or cuddles back in the privacy of the room. Maintaining contact during the first four weeks is critical. That’s the time when a crush-like match becomes a permanent connection. This is the only time period when a match can broken. After the bond forms, it’s nearly impossible to sever.”

“Okay, let’s highlight where it says “skin contact” and the part about it being permanent.”

Shiro gives Lance a soft look, and picks up the highlighter in his lap. He tries to aim for a casual tone. “By the way, it’s only been two weeks, so if you don’t like-”

“Shiro.”

Lance brings a hand to Shiro’s bicep and throws all his passion at Shiro. Every feeling of awe, fondness, affection, pride in their accomplishments, feelings of certainty that they work. They’ll be great. That Shiro is worth the extra work. Shiro closes his eyes, and his relief is so strong it nearly takes Lance’s breath away.

When he can breathe again, he asks.“Alright, you understand how I feel about us, now?”

Shiro nods, a little overwhelmed. Lance takes pity and grabs the book from him to pick up where he left off.

“Many newly-matched pairs prefer bonding more physically, and sexual intercourse is the fastest way to secure the bond.”

Ah, so that’s why Shiro was embarrassed. Whatever, he’s practically an adult, he can do this. He JUST asked to be treated like one, so here goes.

“All HyperSens wristbands read and track for pheromones, emotions, mental state, health, diseases, and illnesses. Any negative symptoms are checked, and treated or purged from the body if possible. Additionally, if the wristband picks up on extremely negative feelings, emotions, or pain, especially during sexual intercourse, Facility personnel will arrive at your location to ensure the health and safety of all members. The supplies for sexual intercourse are in the bedroom, and more can be requested at any time. See the back of the book for additional information and education about the types of sexual intercourse, and which techniques are most effective for bonding.”

Lance can feel how hot his face is. He grimaces at all the awkward emotions. Shiro is blushing, too, but keeping a straight face. He looks at Lance questioningly, and Lance feels his heart pounding furiously.

“We, uh, we’ll see. There’s always time for that later. I think we’re doing okay so far. I enjoy our cuddling.”

Shiro nods in agreement. “No pressure. It's not necessary. But we should talk about what kind of bond we want this to be. Co-working or maybe more intimate? Whatever you want.”

Lance swears if he gets any more red he’ll get an actual burn. “Uh, I don't want to limit us. I like you. I think we could grow into something. Maybe. In the future. I just. Really want to establish a strong foundation first, then we can build up from there.”

Shiro nods. “Since I’m the older one here, you set the rules and the pace. I’m happy with your decision.” Shiro will firmly uphold this. He will NOT sway Lance, or go against his wishes. Shiro makes sure Lance can feel how proud he is of Lance’s maturity. He wants to wrap Lance up in a hug, but maybe after they get through this chapter.

Lance thinks Shiro is the sweetest, but he knows it's not healthy to give up your dreams or wishes. “You’re really sweet, but you should have say in what you want, too, Shiro. This is for life. I’m not going to deny you what you want for our entire lives.”

Shiro shakes his head. “It's okay, Lance. You’re enough. In whatever form it is. This is enough.” He puts his left arm on Lance’s hand to make sure Lance can feel his sincerity.

Oh my gosh this guy. Lance squeezes his eyes shut so he doesn’t have to look and the open and honest expression on Shiro’s face. He is just… Lance has to physically stop himself from doing something stupid. Shiro makes him want to do stupid romantic things. He is tempted to break this whole thing off so he doesn’t have to deal with this for the rest of his life. He already knows Shiro is going to be bad for his health. As sweet as Shiro is being, Lance knows he won’t be able to deny this pure soul anything. He can just imagine their stupidly cute domestic life together, picking up stray kittens and watering their tons of potted plants while cooking each other breakfast in frilly aprons.

Fortunately, Shiro breaks him out of his cavity-inducing vision. “By the way, I think it’s starting. I’m beginning to feel you stronger. Your thoughts and emotions. Even some unconscious thoughts. Just thought I would share.”

Lance just looks at him. That’s good. Their bond. Thoughts. Then it dawns on him. “Oh my god you just saw that, didn’t you.”

Shiro can’t help himself, and pulls Lance in for a hug. He smiles in Lance’s neck. “I love kittens.”

Lance groans in embarrassment and tries to hide in Shiro’s broad chest.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

A couple days later, Shiro gets an announcement on his wristband. Lance is sitting on the couch idly playing a game on the techpad, and Shiro is reading a book on close-range weapons. The faint beeping interrupts the peaceful atmosphere.

Shiro reads the headline. “Ah, just another Facility-wide announcement.”

Frowning, Lance puts the pad in his lap. “What do they want?”

With a few taps, Shiro sends the announcement to the pad, then skims a bit. “It’s time for the yearly family visits. It’s not for another month, but they are giving the matched pairs time to coordinate with their match’s family. That’s considerate of them. ”

“Yearly family visits.”

The flat tone makes Shiro looks up at Lance sharply. His face is pale, and Shiro can’t pick up anything from him.

“You know, a day to visit your family if you want. We get two days, now, for each family…” Shiro trails off, concerned by Lance’s lack of reaction.

Lance is still a dead-end. Unreadable. “Every year.”

It doesn’t seem to be getting across to Lance, so Shiro switches tactics.

“Do you...not want to visit your family?”

“Do I… Shiro.” Lance’s thoughts are rushing a mile a minute, but nothing is clear enough for Shiro to pick up. But it feels like Lance just had a revelation. And not necessarily a good one.

Shiro tries to calm himself. “Yes?”

Lance takes a deep breath. “Don’t panic.”

Dread starts curling in Shiro’s stomach. “I can’t promise anything.”

That pulls a small smile from Lance, and he fiddles with his wristband, before shoving his wrist in Shiro’s face. Shiro looks at the wristband, confused, and Lance refuses to make eye-contact.

“I don’t get them.”

He’s trying, he really is, but Shiro can’t connect the pieces. “You...don’t get...them?”

Lance buries his face in his other hand. “They come every year, right? I don’t get them.”

Shiro looks at the wristband. Then at Lance. Then back at the wristband.

In the past six years, Shiro has learned how to mentally prepare himself for potentially traumatic situations. He feels like he’s about to experience a new one, so he coaches himself through it. Slowly, Shiro. Delicately. Gently look at the clues. Do not full-on panic yet. Try to see the logic. The reasoning. Look at the wristband. Review the conversation. Connect the dots.

And slowly the pieces click together.

Shiro doesn’t know what he’s feeling right now, but he kind of wants to die.

“You... What... It...” He can’t even catch his breath. His face is numb.

Lance peeks at Shiro through his fingers. “Oh boy. Shiro. I told you not to panic. Deep breaths, man. You look like you’re gonna hurl.”

Shiro holds Lance’s wrist in shaking hands.

“Yours...it’s not beeping, Lance.”

Lance gives Shiro a look of pity. “No it’s not.”

“And...it doesn’t…”

Lance shakes his head.

“Never?”

That earns him a shrug. “Not that I can ever remember.”

“So, your family…”

“I never heard about family visits. No one ever told me.”

WHAT.

A warm hand rests on his shoulder. “Shiro, I don’t even know what emotion you’re feeling right now. It’s like a panicked, shocked anger-sadness with a huge side of-”

Shiro drops Lance’s wrist, stands up from the couch, turns, and puts a fist through the wall.

“Hoooooly shit, Shiro!”

Immediately, Shiro’s wristband starts beeping. His fist is still in the wall, and his head is drooped, so Lance stands up on the couch to activate the wristband before Facility personnel show up at their door.

“Takashi Shirogane, report.”

“Eh, hey it’s Lance his match. We’re all good here, Shiro just lost at Monopoly.”

“Takashi Shirogane, confirm.”

Somehow, Shiro manages to gather the energy to speak.

“Y-yeah, all good.”

His voice is weak and sounds wrecked, but the Facility seems content with his answer and the screen goes black.

With herculean effort, Shiro pulls his fist from the wall and collapses on the couch. His cradles his face in his hands. Blood runs from his hand. Lance does a double-take as he realizes Shiro punched with his human hand. Nervously, Lance looks up at the wall above the couch. That’s- yup, the punch nearly went through the whole wall. With a mix of his shaky trepidation and Shiro’s distress, Lance grabs the first aid kit from the bathroom.

“Alright, Shiro. Hey, Shiro, it’s okay.”

Shiro shakes his still-hidden head. Lance starts feeling the anger turn to grief. Tears prickle in his eyes as he thinks about all the missed family visits. He can’t tell if these are his feelings or Shiro’s, but it’s doesn't matter. The loss hits hard.

Eventually, Shiro speaks up. His hands muffle his words. “How did you never notice before? Everyone goes. The Facility would be empty.”

The gauze for Shiro’s hand is unfortunately being used to wipe Lance’s tears, but he lowers it to answer. “I guess those were the days I was in solitary.”

Shiro’s grief increases. “Every year?”

Lance shrugs, trying to seem nonchalant, but his sniffling ruins it. “I guess so.”

Has he really always been locked away on those days? For the past eight years?

“I thought you did good the first three years of training?”

That causes Lance to pause. “Oh yeah. I think that’s when they needed a volunteer Sentinel for Dr. Haggar’s experiment. They probably picked those days on purpose.”

Shiro looks up at Lance’s words. His eyes are red from crying, and the blood is still gushing. It’s all over his face and lap and couch, but he doesn’t move to clean anything up. He looks like a feral warrior or something, but the grief on his face ruins the illusion.

“Please. Just tell me now. What were the experiments with Dr. Haggar about?”

Lance really doesn’t want to cause Shiro any more distress, but he can see how the “ripping off the bandaid” metaphor works. Better to get it all over with.

“Oh! Um… you know how Guides have shield training, right? Well, it turns out any HyperSens put through enough trauma builds their own shields?”

Shiro takes a deep breath, holds it for eight counts, and lets it out in a rush.

Lance tries to help out, but feels himself rambling to calm down. He's feeling a little unhinged, too. “Look, we won’t find anything. They are apparently very thorough and good at hiding evidence. If it weren’t for your wristband, we wouldn’t have figured it out. It’s probably all Sendak, anyway. They managed to keep me in the dark for eight years, so I understand if you don’t want to be a part of this anymore.”

Shiro gently grabs the tear-soaked gauze from Lance and holds it to his knuckles with a hiss. “You’re right,” he grits out. “I don’t want to be a part of this anymore.”

Lance feels like the floor dropped out from under him. But a metal hand on his face brings his eyes up to meet Shiro’s. Lance feels the fire and determination radiating from him.

“We’re going to take down the Facility, Lance. You with me?”

Lance gives Shiro a tearful smile, and throws himself in Shiro’s arms, blood be damned.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man!  
> It's 2 against the world!
> 
> Hope y'all like it ok.  
> Also, prepare yourself for the next mission!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is BAMF. Nice job.  
> Your reward is getting to meet the moody kid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all have Lesprit to thank for this. I originally wasn't going to include Keith for quite a while. BUT! They reminded me how much I miss writing Keith and BOOM, this shit wrote itself.
> 
> Sorry it's short, but you're getting two chapters in 24 hours. : P
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Are you going to be okay?”

“I…” Lance would usually brush off any concern and fake bravado, but he’s feeling pretty drained. “I dunno.”

Shiro’s wrist is wrapped, they cleaned the blood up as best as they could, and they finally made it to the bedroom. Lance is snuggled under Shiro’s arm and lays on his chest. They are both shirtless, as suggested by the bonding book, and Lance unconsciously traces Shiro’s scars as he tries to wrap his head around...well, everything. Shiro popped a pain pill at Lance’s insistence (“Don’t even try to hide it, Shiro, I can FEEL the pain,”) but he wants to make sure Lance is alright before the meds kick in.

“You’re still going to visit them, right?”

That’s the question. What if he tries to go, but the Facility blocks him? What would their reason even be? And Sendak. Will he find some excuse to keep Lance at the Facility? Why did they never let him go before? Will going put his family in danger? 

Suddenly, Lance is worried. How much reach does the Facility have?

Lance is positive Sendak has found some way to present him in a negative light. He's sure family visits are public information outside of the Facility. Has he ruined Lance’s reputation? Made it sound like Lance hates his family? Because nothing could be further from the truth. Lance never dreamed that he would be able to see his family again. He feels conflicted, because his opinion of the Facility should go up a little now that he knows the Facility DOES allow the HyperSens to visit families, but thanks to Sendak’s cruelty, Lance NEVER go to GO. WHY?!

And the scariest question: will his family even want to see him? Maybe... after he was registered his family didn't WANT to see him, so they asked Sendak... No, he can't finish that sentence. The thought makes him ill.

“I’m hearing a lot of questions up in there.” Shiro taps Lance’s forehead, and gives him a sleepy smile. Looks like the meds are starting to take effect.

Lance snuggles in closer. “I’m sure they’ve all changed a lot. It’s scary to think about. I’m trying to not get swept up in the misery. My parents, my aunt, my little brother who was just born, my older brother that was in college, my twin sister... I wonder if my grandparents are even still alive... ” Lance trails off, hurting.

Shiro sends gentle thoughts Lance’s way. A breeze through trees. Sun dappling through leaves. The sound of a creek. Birdsong. Lance is beginning to realize that the forest scene is Shiro's peaceful place.

“Hey, let me try something.” Lance focuses, and calls up his favorite place. The hot sun. Warm sand. Clean, salty air. And the ocean. Vast and magnificent. Endless. Happy kids screaming and yelling. Waves crashing. Seagulls calling overhead. BBQ roasting and crabs scurrying and buckets of seashells and…

“Lance.”

He comes back to himself slowly. There are tears running down his face and dripping all over Shiro’s chest. Ashamed, he tries wiping Shiro off. But Shiro, wonderful kind Shiro, stops Lance’s hand and weaves their fingers together. Human and metal hands entwined.

After a bit Lance tries to composes himself. His homesickness is nauseating. “Tell me about your family, Shiro.”

Lance can tell Shiro is fighting sleepiness, but he humors Lance.

“Well, there’s my mom. She’s a teacher. As of last year she was still teaching 5th grade. She loves her job, works at a good school, kids adore her. My...my dad is a lawyer. He tried to take on the Facility when they requested my HyperSens testing after the accident. He almost won, too, but the judge decided the Facility had ownership. My younger brother is still in the military, I think. Rin. Well, Shinrin. He was stationed in Balmera. We had a dog named Kawa… dunno if she’s still around…”

“Kawa, huh?”

Shiro is nodding off, so Lance takes mercy and tucks their joined hands under his chin. 

“Night, Shiro.”

A soft snore answers him, and Lance smiles as he closes his eyes.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

Over breakfast the next morning, Lance and Shiro discuss their options. 

They agree to keep playing along. They’ll just have to wait for a good opportunity to strike.

Lance points at Shiro’s wrist with a straw. “They didn’t expect us to get matched, obviously, or they would have thought about your wristband.”

Shiro nods in agreement. “I think we can use the uncertainty of our bond to our advantage.” Shiro begins peeling an orange. “They’ve never had two Unmatchables before, so they don’t quite know what to expect. Any strange behavior we can blame on the bond.” Shiro picks away at the peel as Lance pokes at his own wrist.

“What should we do about my wristband?”

“Maybe we’ll mention the fact that it might be damaged or glitched to the techs?”

Lance hums, then proposes another idea. “Actually, it’s probably only Sendak that knows it’s offline, or whatever the issue is. That could work in our favor. We don’t want him to know what we know, right? So we shouldn’t tell the techs.”

Shiro looks at him in concern. “I’m just worried. What if you get hurt or there’s an announcement you don’t get?” Shiro unconsciously rubs his damaged knuckles. He’ll need to get them looked at.

Lance smiles, and tries to lighten the mood. “I guess I’ll just have to stick to you like glue.”

Shiro sighs. He didn’t like the idea of the Facility being out to get Lance. But the evidence was undeniable. Off-textbook education. Unnecessarily difficult training. Cruel and unusual punishments. Secret, likely illegal experiments. And denying Lance the most basic of rights, like allowing him to visit family. But he has to admit, there’s not much they can do right now. They need allies, and they can’t alert the Facility, or Sendak, to their plans.

Shiro smiles to lighten the mood. “I suppose I can put up with you for a bit.”

Lance squawks and throws his balled-up straw paper at Shiro, who deflects it with a laugh.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

Two days later, Shiro wakes up in the middle of the night with a gasp. He’s in pain. Agony. He blearily takes stock of himself. Besides the pain in his hand, he’s fine. So it’s not him. Worried, Shiro sits up and pulls back the sheets to gently check Lance. His Sentinel is still sleeping, drooling on his pillow, but a frown disturbs his normally peaceful features. However, Shiro can’t see or feel anything wrong with Lance. He contemplates leaving Lance to sleep while he tries to solve the mystery, but abandons that idea to shake Lance awake. 

“Hey, Lance. Wake up.”

Lance groans, and wakes with a start. His eyes are wide and panicked.

“Ah! Hurts!” Lance hisses in pain. “Shiro, are you okay?”

Shiro steadies Lance. “Yeah, I’m fine. Do you feel it, too?”

“Ow, yeah. Wha? What’s going on?” Lance holds a hand to his heart, mirroring Shiro’s pain.

“I have no idea, but I’m going to try and find out.” Shiro pulls himself out of bed and gropes for a shirt.

“Wait, seriously?” Lance gives him a skeptical look, but it’s pinched in pain.

Shirt on, Shiro leaves the bedroom and heads for the front door. Lance scrambles to follow, grabbing a shirt off the floor.

“Given everything we know about Facility so far, I’m guessing this is another thing they’re trying to keep under wraps. I need answers. If it’s not me, and it’s not you, then who or what is it?"

Lance stops him with a hand when Shiro reaches the door. “Hold on a sec, Shiro. Two questions. How are you going to do this, and what will you do once we figure it out?”

Shiro takes both of Lance’s hands in his own. “I’m going to try and track the source of the pain. Or the location. Maybe find out where it’s coming from. I’m getting a tiny reading. Can you sense anything besides the pain?”

With a sigh, Lance closes his eyes. After a second, he opens them again and shakes his head. “I can’t get a clear reading, but I think we can do some mirroring.”

“Mirroring?” Shiro’s never heard of this before.

“Yeah. That’s what I call it at least. You have the strong emotional connection. If you can translate that into a sensory characteristic or sensation, then I can track it.”

Shiro isn’t quite following. Lance is proposing something pretty phenomenal. “You mean, like channeling the emotion into a sense for you? A sound or a smell?”

Lance gives Shiro a beaming smile. “Yeah! Think you can do it?”

The idea seems sound, but Shiro has never, ever heard of something like this before. It might be the kind of technique an advanced bonded pair might be able to do after years together. He and Lance have had three weeks. Shiro wants to know how the hell Lance even came up with an idea like this. And how he got confident enough to use it in practice. Shiro has a feeling this is going to fall into the category of “Shit I don’t really want to know about because it involves Lance’s eight years of suffering under Dr. Haggar.” But no one ever got anywhere by playing it safe.

“What the hell. Let’s give it a shot.”

Hands still linked, Shiro focuses on the pain in his heart. He imagines a person in distress, like Lance was when they met in the matching. So he sends the sensations of his safe place. The pine forests in the mountains. The smell of earth and nature. The twittering of birds and the rush of a river. Then, he pushes that two directions: one at Lance at one at the source of the pain.

Lance’s eyes widen with a soft gasp. “Shiro! Holy shit! That’s incredible! Hold that thought, I got a location!” Lance grabs his arm and drags them both out the door.

Shiro barely manages to close the door behind them as they sneak out. They make it out of the residential dorms before Lance speaks up again. “Okay, so we’re tracking it. Now, how about the other question. What are you going to do when we get there?”

The sensations of the forest are being pulled. Someone on the other side is accepting Shiro’s mental images. That means it’s a person. He pings the realization to Lance, who hums in acknowledgement. 

“It depends on what, or who we find.”

Lance follows the smell of the forest and drags Shiro past the mess hall, past the simulation rooms, and past the classrooms. Shiro is a little worried about the fact that they could be tracked via their wristbands, but he decides they’ll “burn that bridge when they get there,” as Lance loves to say. If they get caught, they get caught. He’s sure they can come up with some excuse about bond stability and the urge for late night adventures or something. The Facility has no field of reference. Unless… they once did.

Shiro shudders at the thought of even more secrets, and Lance yanks him a little more sharply as they turn a corner. He hisses out a whisper. “Shiro, focus. You’re making the scent trail fade away. We’re getting close.” 

So Shiro puts his concerns aside and focuses of sending the forest scene to whoever is getting it. The pain is getting worse, and a spike of fear forces both Lance and Shiro to stop in their tracks.

“Um, Shiro,” Lance pants. “This...this might be over our heads.” His chest is heaving. 

“I think… this is an emergency,” Shiro gasps out.

Lance bends over and braces his hands on his knees. “Huh?” 

“What we’re feeling. I think it’s a HyperSens going through a mental break down.”

“Holy crap, Shiro. What are we getting ourselves into. What are they DOING?”

“We need to find them, Lance. I don’t know but we’ve got to help them.”

Lance sucks in a huge breath and paws at Shiro until he finds his hand again. “Okay...okay let’s go. Keep sending the forest.”

The two stumble the rest of the way. Lance leads them to the very back of the Facility, where the storage and unused dorm rooms are. He stops in front of Storage Room #73. Shiro is about to scan his wristband at the electronic lock pad, but Lance puts his up instead. After a beat, there’s a dull click, but the pad doesn’t light up red or green. Lance shoves the door open, unconcerned, and Shiro has a sinking suspicion Lance has opened these doors before. “These are right next to Dr. Haggar’s experiment rooms,” Lance explains as they slowly enter the room. “I guess they never deactivated the key that allows me to enter this block.”

They don’t make it very far in the room. It’s small, not a full laboratory, but it doesn’t need to be. There’s medical equipment and a bed, and-

“Oh my god. Oh my god, Shiro!”

Lance rushes forward before Shiro can stop him. He reaches the person on the bed, no, strapped to the bed, who is writhing and flailing and the pain is so intense Shiro can’t believe the person isn’t screaming themselves raw. Shiro curls in on himself, apparently feeling the pain harder than Lance, who has two hands on the person’s face. Shit, there’s a gag or something on the person’s face, muffling their distressed sounds.

“Okay. Okay. Calm down! We aren’t going to hurt you!”

The person doesn’t register Lance’s presence, and continues to flail as Shiro limps closer. The pain has spread from his chest to all his extremities. He’s hyperventilating, matching the person, no, the boy on the bed.

“Holy shit he’s our age. I’ve never SEEN him before?? Why?? How?!” A pained whimper from Shiro draws Lance back from full panic, and Lance quickly realizes he needs to do something or the kid AND Shiro are screwed. Shiro is leaning heavily on the bed, clearly in agony as well. This guy is emotionally projecting like CRAZY. He’s so out of control, how is Lance even going to-

“Wait, emergency bonding! Okay buddy, I got you.”

Lance closes his eyes and picks up from where Shiro left off. He keeps his hands firmly on the sides of the boy’s head, and sends the images of Shiro’s forest. He tries to recreate the smells and the sounds and the calmness and the peace. But he can only hold that scene for so long before they turn to Lance’s scene. The forest ends at a sheer cliff and overlooks a vast ocean. The mix of pine trees and salty ocean air catches on the breeze and seagulls replace the songbirds. A pinecone drops from one of the trees and falls to the ocean, insignificant and unimportant to the rest of the world. Keeping the illusions going is exhausting Lance, but he feels like he’s almost there. Eventually, tentatively, new images enter Lance’s vision. 

The sun gets hotter and a mountain grows up from the ocean. The pine trees are replaced by more tropical plants, and the dirt of the cliff turns black and rocky. The mountain continues to grow, and the heat gets hotter, and the ocean begins to steam and hiss, and then-

Lance smells the acidic air turn smokey in warning before a volcano bursts forth from the ocean and erupts in beautiful chaos.

There’s a shout and Lance falls into darkness.

Lance returns to consciousness on the floor. Shiro is sprawled on the floor on the opposite side of the bed. Lance groggily sits up, and when he doesn’t feel anything, he attempts to stand. He falters. His legs are weak and he's so sapped of energy. Lance catches himself on the bed before he collapses again, and looks at the bed's occupant. 

The boy is unconscious.

Decision made, Lance turns up his sense of touch, tricks his muscles, and rips through the binds on the bed.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

“You are SO lucky we don’t have a mission for another three days.”

Shiro comes to slowly. He’s disoriented and groggy and stiff. Dull pain shoots across his body, and he groans.

“I am clearly the best and most amazing.”

Okay, he’s with Lance. That’s the most important thing. And it feels like he’s back in their bed.

“You should goddamn appreciate this.”

When Shiro finally opens his eyes it’s to Lance flexing and talking to himself.

“Ngh, Lance, what are you doing?”

Shiro’s voice pulls Lance over to his side. Lance helps him sit up.

“What happened? How did we get back? And where’s the kid?”

Lance smirks, but now that Shiro can get a good look, Lance looks exhausted. His skin is pale and his eyes have dark circles under them

“Um, I happened, we got back because I’m awesome, and he’s right there.”

Shiro’s eyes widen, and he slowly turns to look at the unconscious black-haired figure resting next to him on the bed.

“What the fuck,” Shiro mutters, and Lance falls off the bed in shock.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, a complete plot re-write but it's going to be even more amazing yes.
> 
> This is why comments are magic. You ask for things and I try to put them in. : )
> 
> Also, Lance's family is based off the image from his mental bonding picture.  
> It's a best guess.
> 
>  
> 
> [Family Pic 1](http://65.media.tumblr.com/76e47457275fb02303de1c366f9d2bd5/tumblr_o9ti17d9xj1vz5i57o1_1280.png)  
> [Family Pic 2](http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/voltron/images/b/b0/47._Lance_mindmeld_image_-_family.png/revision/latest?cb=20160706042412)  
> 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith wakes up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops, sorry it took so long. Life got really busy!  
> AND I FINALLY GOT FINAL FANTASY XV HOLY CRAP GUYS ITS GREAT.
> 
> Then the season 2 trailer helped, too!
> 
> (WHERE ARE THE SHIRTS OMG?!)
> 
> Aaaaad then I got sick today, so finally had time to write xD.  
> So here we are!
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

It takes some encouragement, but Shiro manages to get Lance to stop preening in front of the unconscious boy on their bed long enough to wrestle the less-heroic version of the story from Lance. Back in the lab room, apparently the kid was projecting so strongly Shiro himself was suffering just as badly. Mid-panic, Lance realized he needed to do something to get the boy under control. So he tried to establish an emergency bond. And since the boy went unconscious, he had no idea if it succeed or not. However, Lance was hopeful, saying he got some sensory input from the boy right before the kid passed out. It was an image of a volcano. Shiro had to admit that sounded like a positive thing, but having no training on it due to being a Guide, Shiro honestly had no idea.

After the mental connection died, Lance broke the bonds trapping the boy to the bed (“Hulked out, Shiro, I hulked out,”) and by some inhuman means, dragged both Shiro and the kid back to the dorm room in the middle of the night without anyone seeing them.

“There were no alarms, Shiro. Nothing. I’ve been listening all night and morning, but no one’s sent out an alert. Not even your wristband.”

Lance proposed that it could be same thing that’s going on with his wristband. Given the fact that probably nobody knows about the boy except for Sendak and Dr. Haggar (“Ew, just call her Haggar now, Shiro. She’s hardly a doctor,”) the two wouldn’t be able to make a big fuss without alerting the whole Facility to their illegal deeds.

After Shiro gets enough of the story to satisfy him, he puts Lance to bed. Or tries to, at least. Lance resists.

“It’s alright, Shiro, we need to be ready for anything.” Lance is fiddling with his wristband and from on the outside he looks alright, but he can’t keep his shields up and Shiro feels the exhaustion pouring from him. It’s a wonder Lance is even upright. Between the mirroring, the emergency bond, and the trip back to the room, Lance should by all accounts be drained.

Shiro grabs Lance’s shoulders and waits until Lance looks up at him. “Lance, rest. I’ll stand guard.”

Lance shakes his head, stubborn, and Shiro has no choice. Lance needs to rest for his own good. So Shiro manhandles Lance into the bed next to the other boy. Lance tries to fight him off, but even on his best day, he doesn’t have the strength to keep up with Shiro. Patiently, Shiro waits as Lance tires himself out, and after a few minutes, he finally stills, panting heavily.

Shiro raises an eyebrow. “Are you going to rest, now?”

Embarrassed, Lance turns away so he doesn’t have to look at Shiro’s knowing gaze. He looks at the mysterious boy on the bed next to him. He’s still out cold, despite all the ruckus. After a minute Lance nods, still refusing to look at Shiro.

Shiro smiles, pushing the brown hair back from Lance’s face, and releases him. He takes a seat in the chair Lance dragged over to the bed earlier, and waits until Lance closes his eyes and his breath evens out. Once Lance is officially asleep, Shiro gets up and presses a kiss to Lance’s forehead, before turning to head out to the main room. Almost as an afterthought, he stops and pulls back the sheets a bit until he can see the hands of Lance and the boy. Shiro notes that the boy doesn’t have a wristband. Shiro gently moves their arms so it looks like they are loosely holding hands. Satisfied, he returns the sheets and heads to order breakfast. It may have been an emergency bond, but the physical contact is sure to help them both.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

As the day progresses, Shiro orders meals just to keep up appearances, but no one is hungry. Lance is still asleep and the other boy is still unconscious. He busies himself by idly continuing to read the  How to Bond  book. He and Lance finished reading the section on physically bonding, but this next section is on the emotional and mental part of bonding. Apparently the scenes Lance dubbed as “safe places” are the mental scenery each HyperSens have, and those more in tune with their abilities have stronger scenes. Shiro’s mental space is the forest, and Lance’s is the beach. According to Lance’s account, the volcano scene might be the other kid’s mental space. A volcanic world doesn’t exactly strike Shiro as a place of peace and comfort, but he won’t judge. There’s no information on emergency bonds, but the book does say sharing mental spaces is a great way to strengthen the mental connections.

Dinnertime rolls around and Shiro orders some sandwiches for dinner. He grabs a plate and returns to his bedroom watch just as the boy seems to be waking up. Shiro watches him groan and twitch as he regains consciousness, and Shiro holds his breath, not wanting to startle him. His dark sleep-mussed hair hides most of his face, but his grey eyes open, and he seems to stare at the ceiling, probably collecting his thoughts. Shiro is about to make his presence known when the eyes widen and the boy sits up with a gasp. He looks around the room with a terrified look, chest heaving and body tense.

Looks like it’s time for him to step up. Shiro lowers the plate and puts his hands up in surrender. “You’re okay. You’re fine. We aren’t going to hurt you.”

The boy flinches and turns to look at Shiro, scared. His hair looks unkempt, his face is gaunt, and the standard Facility clothes seem too his for his lean body.

Shiro stays frozen in place. “My name is Shiro. I’m a Guide. You’re in our dorm room.” With a gesture, Shiro points at Lance’s sleeping form on the bed. “That’s Lance. He rescued you from the room. We felt your pain last night.”

When Shiro doesn’t move, the boy slowly calms down. Wary, but not immediately threatened. He looks down at the boy next to him on the bed and takes note of the fatigued look on his face. Then he looks down at their touching hands and frowns, but he doesn’t pull away.

“He exhausted himself saving you, and stayed up all night keeping watch. I put him to bed this morning.”

The boy picks up Lance’s hand, and Shiro forces himself not to react. He’ll just have to trust that this unfamiliar boy won’t hurt him. However, Shiro will not hesitate to destroy him if he turns out to be dangerous. Lance comes first. He surprises Shiro by linking their hands together tightly, and resting their clasped hands back down on the bed. Maybe the boy picked up on Shiro’s intention, or maybe he just appreciates the contact. Either way, so far the boy is behaving.

There’s a lot of questions Shiro wants to ask, but he gives the boy time. Given that he was tied to the bed for who knows how long and likely subjected to some sort of pain, this is probably a big transition. So Shiro relaxes, sits back down in the chair, and picks the book back up. He can see the boy watching his every move, but Shiro’s disinterested attitude seems to be the right move.

Two minutes later, the boy pulls his free hand not holding Lance’s from the the bedding and rubs his face. Shiro watches him comb a hand through his hair and pull it back with a grimace.

“You can wash if you want. We have a shower-bath next door. And fresh clothes.”

That earns Shiro a suspiciously cautious look.

Shiro puts his book down, and the boy tenses as he’s the center of attention, again. “Look, we felt you projecting your pain last night and rescued you. We won’t have any interruptions for three more days. It’s week 3 of the bonding time, so they give us lots of privacy. We have enough time to figure out a way to keep you safe.”

The boy looks back down at Lance next to him, then back at Shiro. Shiro guesses he’s making the connection about them being bonded.

“I just got us sandwiches. Can I get you food and water?” Shiro picks up the plate of food and wiggles it a bit with a smile.

There’s a beat, then the boy nods. He watches intently as Shiro stands up to grab a glass of water and a paper towel from the bathroom. Shiro’s not really hungry, but he has a feeling the other kid won’t eat if he notices Shiro not eating. Lance also mentioned that he noticed the boy had some sort of IV in his arm when going to free him, so Shiro just wants to make sure he’s getting some solids in him.

When he returns the boy hasn’t moved. Shiro sets the plate on the bedside table and splits a sandwich in half. He wraps his half in the paper towel and walks back to the chair. He’s about to sit when he gets a ping of distress from Lance. His Sentinel is grimacing and crying out softly in his sleep. Worried, Shiro returns to Lance’s side and sits on the bed, sandwich forgotten on the other side table. With a gentle hand he cups Lance’s face and peeks into his head.

The peaceful beach scene is trashed. Trees are snapped and the sky is full of ominous clouds. Umbrellas and towels lay abandoned on the sand. As Shiro gazes out at the black water, a chilly breeze lashes at him. This is...not good. Lance’s mental state must be shot to hell. Shiro knew he pushed himself way too hard trying to rescue the unknown kid. If Shiro can’t try to repair some of the damage, Lance is in trouble. Shiro berates himself for not being a better Guide and helping out earlier. Lance has been picking up his slack the entire time, and apparently not giving himself proper time to heal. Crap. Shiro REALLY needs to get his stuff together if he wants to keep Lance around. An unstable Sentinel is likely to zone out or otherwise endanger himself. Determined, Shiro promises to himself that he will be there for Lance in his full capacity. Making Lance continue to carry his burden is unacceptable. He will NOT endanger his Sentinel anymore. Never again.

Shiro starts by trying to heal some of the damage. He projects himself cleaning up the beach and pushing the clouds away so the sun can shine. It’s not much, but it’s a start. As he’s working on gently fixing the trees, the water starts to lighten from its black hue. Good. Shiro is about to leave the scene, but the warmth stops him. The freezing air warms to a pleasant temperature, and testing the water gets the same warm result.

Satisfied, Shiro pulls away delicately. When he opens his eyes, Lance’s face has gone lax and the frown has ceased. A tugs pulls his attention from Lance.

There’s a hand on his arm. He looks down at it, confused for a second, before looking at their guest with wide eyes.

“You-”

The boy looks away, either shy or embarrassed, but he doesn’t remove his arm from Shiro’s human one. The boy’s other hand still is holding Lance’s. He has the three of them forming a circle.

Shiro is quick to make the connection.

“You just helped him, didn't you? That… that’s incredible!”

The dark brown-haired kid says nothing, but Shiro can feel his hands tighten slightly.

“Thank you. You saw how trashed it was. I keep trying to tell Lance not to push himself too hard, but he’s not very good at listening.”

Shiro sighs and pulls away from the boy and Lance to retrieve the glass of water.

“Here, drink up, and eat what you can of the sandwich. I don’t know what kind of food they gave you, but we’re happy to share.”

As Shiro gets up, he misses the shudder from the boy. His free hand crosses his chest to clamp tightly to his opposite arm and he curls up defensively, before forcing himself to breathe deep and relax. He manages to return to a somewhat normal state before Shiro settles back into his chair.

A few minutes and glass of water later, he finally gets the courage to speak up. His voice is gravelly and awkward, and it takes him a few croaks to get the sounds out.

“I- I’m… K-Keith.”

Startled, Shiro fumbles the book in his hand and it drops to the floor with a thud. But then he picks it up at smiles at him.

“Nice to meet you, Keith.”

The smile is so warm and genuine that Keith finds himself slowly smiling back.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Ma’am, Subject # 73 is missing.”

Dr. Haggar turns with to the caretaker with a hiss, her meticulously filled-out forms suddenly forgotten.

“What?!”

The young lab nurse gulps and holds her clipboard up to her chest defensively.

“He wasn’t there when I went to give the hormones. The bed was empty and the bonds were torn. Last night’s readings indicated he was going through a severe stress-induced mental collapse before they end abruptly. The sensors were forcibly removed.”

The Facility’s senior experimental scientist Dr. Haggar throws her pen across the room with a screech. Her long white hair is coming loose from her hastily-made ponytail, and she paces, agitated. Her lab coat is wrinkled and stained.

The lab nurse takes a step back. “W-we can sweep the Facility to retrieve him. He’s got to be somewhere.”

“No!”

“But..”

“Do NOT alert the rest of the Facility. Especially not Sendak. If the boy is still within the Facility we’ll find him. Leave me, and see to Subject # 72. That one isn’t as promising, but will have to make do.”

The nurse turns to leave the room, but pauses at the door.

“What if #73 is found? How do we collect him without alerting anyone?”

Dr. Haggar waves a hand, unconcerned. “Eh, we’ll say he was a disoriented recent collection from an emergency situation. Like Shirogane. Once he’s officially registered, we’ll “discover” that he needs medication and a separate room from the others, and quietly continue our experiment.”

The assistant takes a breath and holds it, before letting it out shakily. “And, if he’s escaped? Without the hormones...” She trails off, uncertain.

That makes Dr. Haggar smile. It’s a cold and uncaring look, and the young nurse is starting to see some of the doctor’s true colors.

“If he’s escaped, then soon he won’t be our problem.”

She chuckles and smoothes out the forms she had wrinkled in her fit. She pulls another pen from her pocket, ignoring the one thrown across the room, and returns to her work. She shoos the caretaker away.

“Now, dismissed. I need to get back to work before we prep the next subject.”

The nurse quickly leaves the room, shutting the door behind her. Once outside, she leans back against the door, feeling faint. An evil-sounding laugh sounds from the other side of the door, and the young woman flees in a hurry.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Keith is uncomfortable. Actually, no, scratch that. He’s really not. The bed is soft, nicer than the one in the lab. And he’s sore, but not in any real pain. And he doesn’t feel safe, exactly, but he’s not panicking or distressed.

But he feels out of sorts. He’s in an unfamiliar situation. Keith is so used to having extremes thrown at him, he’s adapted a method to find “inner peace” during the most desperate of scenarios. So not having to fight or flight right now is strange, to say the least.

These other boys are sheltering him, as best as they can. They are being respectful of his space and his needs, and they aren’t asking anything in return. He should be suspicious, but…

He can FEEL their intent. They seem genuine.

And…

If he’s honest…

A part of him wants the comfort they appear to be offering.

But he’s pretty sure blindly trusting others is what got him into this whole mess to start with.

After he introduces himself to the Guide, Keith expects him to immediately bombard him with questions. Who is he? Where did he come from? What did they do to him? But, he doesn’t. He smiles, says he happy to finally meet Keith officially, and refills his water glass. Then he goes and points around the room, identifying things of interest like the bathroom and the way to the kitchen, and returns to his book.

Keith doesn’t even remember the last time he washed. It could be a trap. Showers are when people are at their most vulnerable; naked and unarmed. But, the temptation is too good. He slowly gets out of bed, releasing the Sentinel’s hand almost with regret, and heads to the bathroom. The Guide points to the fresh towel and change of clothes the Sentinel had set out for him earlier, and Keith grabs them on his way. If Shiro notices that he stumbles a few times, he doesn’t say anything.

The water is SO nice. Keith remembers lying in the lab, missing showers. Fresh hot water and clean skin and the freedom to move and stretch. Washed hair and drying off in a warm room. The reality is almost overwhelming. Keith stands in the shower and cries. What happened to him that made even showers feel like a dream too good for the living?

Actually, Keith isn’t sure he wants to know. It might better to not even try to remember. Dreams and wishes and memories were ripped from him, and he learned to live only in the moment. When someone is shooting 400 volts through your brain, and the straps are to prevent you from breaking your own bones while seizing, there’s not a lot of time for happy thoughts. Keith remembers the pain, but he doesn’t know why he’s here or what the doctor’s plan was.

But in-between the suffering, he would escape to his mind and traverse the harsh and unpredictable environment. There was no point in sitting and dreaming about things out of reach that he’d never get. Fortunately his mental space was always there for him. All he had to do was close his eyes and lose himself.

The volcanic world was risky, but safe. The lava burned and the smoke was hard to breathe, but it was HIS. He would wake up feeling invisible burns and choke on non-existent smoke, but he could control that pain, and he learned to embrace it. It was the only sense of control he had.

And this is nice. Showers and soft beds and sandwiches are nice, but how long until he’s taken away again? Best to not get too comfortable, or it will be harder to adjust. He’ll just have to learn how to forget it all again when he’s strapped to bed the while the volts go through him.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

When Keith comes to, he’s lying on the cold tile. He’s dripping wet and naked, but someone has thrown a towel across his lap and he’s being held in someone’s arms. Gentle thoughts are embracing him, and he smells the soft forest trees. The same ones that reached him while he was breaking apart. It’s the Guide.

“- ay, you’re okay, I got you. Just breathe.”

Keith tries to lift a hand to his face, but his is body is pathetically weak. It flops to the side and hits the floor. He grimaces and the Guide is quick to pick up his hand and cradle it to his own chest. Keith is dimly aware of the cold metal of the prosthetic burning against his flushed skin.

“...nnngh…”

Great. He can’t even get it together enough to speak. He weakly pokes at the Guide’s mental link, and tries to convey the idea of standing. He can feel the Guide scoff at him, but he helps him up without complaining. Once Keith is mostly upright with the towel on his waist and an arm around the Guide for support, they slowly head back to the bedroom.

He stops still when he sees sleepy blue eyes looking at him in concern. The Guide looks up from where he was watching Keith’s feet, and looks up in shock.

“Lance!”

That earns him a lopsided smile from the Sentinel. “Hey Shiro. How is he? Hey, are you okay? I could feel your distress.”

Immediately, Keith feels guilty. Crap. His freakout in the shower woke up the Sentinel who saved his life.

Shiro takes a step forward and encourages Keith to do the same. He gives Keith a side look.

“I think we’re okay. We’re still processing, I believe.”

Keith nods in agreement, still not ready to trust his voice.

Lance leans back, visibly relaxed. “Okay. Okay, good. I was gonna be pissed if I went to all the effort, and he just keeled over in the shower and died. I would have nothing to show for all my hard work!”

The Guide chuckles at that, but Keith feels indignation build up. What?! He wouldn’t just die from a shower. He’s just...adapting. Processing, like the Guide said. He would huff, but he’s still trying to catch his breath. The Guide gets him to the bed and goes back to retrieve the fresh clothes.

“Here, put them on. Lance and I will close our eyes to give you privacy because we're polite, WON’T we Lance.”

The Sentinel groans, but obliges and covers his eyes with his hands at the same time the Guide does. Keith quickly dresses and throws his wet towel at the Sentinel. The following squawk makes him smile, and when the Sentinel rips his hands away from his face to glare at Keith, he has a smirk and raised eyebrow ready to go.

Shiro laughs as he watches Lance try to detangle himself from the huge towel and crawl his way over to their new guest.

“Now, now Lance, be good. Keith is our guest. Are you feeling any better?”

Lance flops his hands down with a huff as Shiro calls him out, and turns to give Shiro a beaming smile.

“Yeah, feeling much better. I could probably benefit from some more rest, but I’m doing okay.”

Shiro appreciates Lance’s honestly. Looks like he’s beginning to understand that Shiro is serious about Lance’s well-being and won’t take ‘no’ for an answer when it’s in Lance’s best interests.

Shiro sits on the end of the bed by Lance.

“Keith woke up about an hour ago. I got us sandwiches, but none of us have eaten, yet. Think you can manage some food?”

Lance nods and Shiro gets up to grab another sandwich. When he leaves, Lance turns to Keith, who is sitting criss-cross on other edge of the bed.

“Keith, huh?”

Lance eyes him up and down, making it as dramatic as possible. The other boy crosses his arms and raises that darned eyebrow again as if to say “Yeah, what of it?”

Shiro returns with the plate, sees the two boys with their mock face-off, and sighs.

“Why do I get the feeling that this is going to be a regular thing?”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There, some lighthearted, happy moments.
> 
> What do you think?
> 
> Any more guesses as to Keith's affiliation or what he presents as??
> 
> And why were they experimenting on him???


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uh, hi? Sorry it's been a while. Here's a little more on Keith's story. Please enjoy!

Lance and Keith face off over sandwiches. It’s petty, but Shiro is just glad both of them are eating. When Lance catches Keith eating quicker after the first bite, Lance tries to eat his even faster. Shiro returns with seconds for them, and tries to keep his face straight as they race through the sandwiches. When Lance demands a third, however, Shiro puts a stop to it, refusing to let them make themselves sick.

Lance insists on getting up to stretch his legs, and hobbles over to the couch in the living room. Shiro follows him, and they leave it up to Keith if he wants to follow along.

Shiro sits next to Lance on the couch and Lance immediately puts his legs in his lap without comment. Shiro’s left hand is warm and comforting, like always. It helps him feel grounded, and Lance has a suspicion Shiro feels the same.

After a few peaceful minutes, Lance speaks up. “So, what’s our plan?”

Shiro puts his chin on his right, metal hand in a thoughtful pose.

“Good question. Obviously, we’re not going to turn him in.”

Lance hums his agreement, and that’s right when Keith slowly joins them in the living room. He takes note of the two sprawled on the couch, and stands awkwardly in the middle of the room.

Shiro helps him out.

“We can scoot over for you, or you can have the chair over there. Whatever you want.”

Shiro points to the soft lounge chair by the bookcase. It’s really comfortable, but unfortunately only big enough for one. Well, one Shiro. Lance just dangles all his limbs everywhere then complains it’s not big enough.

Keith sits in the chair stiffly, then makes a physical effort to lean back and relax a bit. He meets eyes with Shiro, then Lance, then looks away.

“Shiro and I were just discussing what to do about you.”

That makes Keith tense up again, and Lance quickly backtracks.

“I mean, we're not turning you in. We want to keep you safe as long as we can, but we want to make sure you’re comfortable and stuff. Obviously food isn’t a problem, but I don’t know how to get you out and about. Given you don’t have a wristband, I’m pretty sure you’re not registered.”

Lance points to Keith’s wrist, then at his own and Shiro’s. Keith is lacking the thin black electronic device.

“That means you won’t be able to get into any doors, including ours, and the other Facility personnel won’t recognize you. They’ll probably take you away as soon as they notice you. But cooping you up in here doesn’t sound good, either.”

That comment makes Shiro look at him sharply, but Lance ignores him, keeping his gaze on Keith.

Keith shrugs. He’s already come to peace with the fact that he has no control over his life.

Lance was expecting either irritation at the situation or for Keith to jump into planning mode. But the clear acceptance shocks Lance.

“Wait, don’t tell me you want to go back?!”

Another shrug, and Lance tries to jump up in anger. Unfortunately for him, Shiro keeps him pinned to the couch with hands on his legs.

“Lance, calm down.”

“After everything, you’re just giving up?! Do you not remember how much you were hurting?!”

Shiro pins Lance with a look and a squeeze on his knee. When Lance gets the message and huffs angrily, Shiro turns his attention to their guest.

“Keith, what do you want?”

Another shrug. Shiro can tell how uncomfortable Keith is even without his strong Guide powers. Keith’s shoulders are tensed up and he’s looking down at his feet. He’s also begun to project stress and anxiety. Shiro can feel himself become short of breath, and he hears Lance breathing heavily. Shiro needs to calm things down. He’s begun to realize Keith has a quite a big effect on them both.

“Well, we’ll be called for a mission performance in 3 days. You’ll need to stay here while we’re out, obviously, and then it’s another week until we’re called again for the last one. Good thing there’s no cleaning service, or else we’d be in trouble.”

At Keith’s blank look, Lance squints his eyes, having some sort of revelation. “Keith.” He waits until Keith finally looks up. “Do you even know where we are? What the Facility is?”

That seems to be a more neutral question Keith can handle. He doesn’t have to explain his messed up emotions or backwards thinking.

“I think I got some sort of orientation when I was a kid. But then I went into that room and… time kind of… got away from me.” Keith opens and closes his hand in his lap as if trying and failing to grasp the lost time. The feelings of anxiety are replaced with an oppressive vacuum.

Lance and Shiro shoot each other a look, and Keith realizes he needs to try harder. So he tries to make himself smile at his rescuers. “I heard you helped me earlier, thanks.”

There’s a snort from Lance, and Shiro answers for them both. “It’s the least we could do.”

Lance, ready to repair things between them, tries his earlier question again. “So what do you want to do now?”

Keith gives a one-shouldered shrug. “I dunno, eventually they’ll recover me, right? So I’ll just try to learn what I can about myself before I go.”

“What?! You’re really going to give in?” Lance almost seems sad now, rather than angry.

“Is there any point? Isn’t that the reality?”

Lance can’t get his words together, so Keith keeps going.

“I don’t mind the fact that I’ll get taken. As long as I’m prepared this time. No more surprises.” His look hardens and there’s a thin thread of determination.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Despite sleeping all day and not being up for very long, Keith and Lance are both dragging their feet by the time bedtime rolls around again. Lance is still recovering from his ordeal with the emergency bond, and Keith is not only emotionally drained, but clearly suffering from poor nutrition and health. Both Lance and Keith try to brush Shiro off, but a hard look from him gets the two to bed.

Shiro supervises their changing and teeth brushing, and takes charge of the sleeping arrangement. Lance takes his side of the bed, Shiro takes his own, then positions Keith right in the middle of them both. Keith is embarrassed, but too exhausted to put up a fight.

The soft flipping of Shiro’s book and the quiet echo of Lance’s headphones lulls Keith into a relaxed state, until a poke from Lance jerks him awake.

At a pointed look from Shiro, Lance meekly apologizes.

“Sorry. But I had a quick question. It’s been bugging me.”

“Shoot.”

“You’re a Guide, right?”

At this, Shiro lowers his book into his lap and gives Keith his full attention. He’s curious, too.

“Um… I don’t know?”

Lance thinks Keith is pulling his leg.

“No, seriously. When did you HyperSens abilities awaken?”

“I…” Keith’s face scrunches up. It’s almost adorable. Almost. “They didn’t?”

Lance blinks. “What?”

Keith is still frowning, nose wrinkled. “I’m not a HyperSens.”

Shiro and Lance look at each other in shock.

Lance and Shiro blurt out at the same time.

“What?! How?”  
“But you have the ability.”

Keith gives them both a confused look. “I do?”

“Yea!”

Keith frowns more, this time his face takes on a thoughtful look. Then he looks back between Shiro and Lance.

“Well what do you think I am? Sentinel or Guard?”

“I’d say...Guide,” Shiro guesses. “Um, well you have a mental space, right? The volcano. A scene that vivid is a Guide quality.”

“And you helped me and Shiro with mine,” Lance chimes in. “So I’d say a guide, too, like him.”

Keith seems to take the information well. “What would be the other? Sentinel, right?”

Lance can’t help but puff his chest out. “Yup. Sentinels can hone and control their senses.”

“Really?”

“Yup. that’s me. That’s how I found you. I initiated an emergency bond. That’s supposed to be only occur between a Sentinel and a Guide.”

Keith sits up abruptly in shock. He grabs Lance by the shoulders, hard, and shakes him.

“Ugh! What wrong?”

“Keith, what are you doing?”

Keith shakes his head. His voice is panicked. “No. No no no NO you can’t bond. Take it back!”

Lance looks at him “I- I can’t? I mean it’s just a match at this point, not a complete bond…”

“I can’t!”

“You were dying, man, and so was Shiro. I needed to do something!”

Keith removes his hands from Lance’s and hides his own face in them. The air gets heavy with dread and foreboding. Keith mutters something into his hands, and Lance leans in, asking him to repeat that. He only catches a bit of what Keith is mumbling.

“-you’ve doomed us all. It’s not-”

Lance and Shiro look at each other in shock. Shiro rubs his back gently, giving Lance a look over Keith’s back. Lance shrugs in return.

“Ok, tell us what you know. For all of our sakes.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“The pain was part of the experiment, I think. They wanted something from me.”

Keith’s eyes are glazed a bit as he retells his experiences. Shiro frowns, but tries to bury his feelings of concern by sending thoughts of acceptance and support. Lance rubs Keith’s back gently.

“They were trying to unlock it. Whatever “it” was. She kept saying, ‘getting closer. More. Another dose. Another round.’ And drawing blood samples.”

A shudder runs through his frame, and Shiro and Lance huddle in closer.

“So I learned to escape into my own kind of hell.”

There’s a sudden stillness in the air as the other two boys freeze. Slowly, Shiro puts his hand on Keith’s shoulder. He chooses his words carefully.

“So…. You created your own headspace to survive. Your sanctuary.”

He gets a bitter laugh for his efforts. “Well it’s not exactly a sanctuary. If it's my creation, I can control it. I feel pain on my own terms. That helped me survive, but it frustrated them. There were injections and tubes. Regular doses of stuff. So all the things you say I can do. It wasn't there before. That's not…” he trails off.

Lance tries to collect himself, to repair the conversation, but Shiro can feel him struggling.“Not what?”

The glaze disappears from Keith’s eyes and he pins Lance with a sad look. “Well I was gonna say it's not the real me, but I don't even remember what that is anymore.”

  
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Better late than never. Sorry for the short chapter. I got a LOT on my plate, but I managed to squeeze in some writing time. Thanks for sticking with me this long!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Shiro fucks up, and we meet The Director.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks everone for the comments! 
> 
> Here's an expression of my gratitude. ♡ ♡ ♡
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next morning sees the normally peaceful dorm room full of tension.

Keith has a scowl on his face.

Lance grimaces.

Shiro is about to pull his hair out.

“Well, we need to do something. Let’s connect!”

“What? No!” Keith backs away.

Lance doesn’t let him. His look is determined. “Yes, you’re still weak. Mentally. I can feel you. I'm going to teach you how to build shields.”

“I don't need shields,” Keith replies defensively.

Lance crosses his arms and juts his hip out. “Yes, you do. Your projections are causing both me and Shiro pain.”

That catches Keith off guard. “Huh?”

“Yeah. All this angst.” Lance gestures to the whole room. “We’re feeling it. Your pain.”

Oh… Keith doesn’t have a reply to that. Maybe Lance has a point.

Lance holds his hands out to Keith. “Let’s connect. Either reach out to me or let me in. This is to help all of us, I promise.”

Reluctantly, Keith shuffles closer, but Shiro stands up from the couch and intercepts him before he reaches Lance.

“I'll go first, Lance.”

“Shiro…”

“I'll be fine.” He holds a hand out to Keith. Right as the two are about to make contact, Lance slaps Keith’s hand away. Shiro turns to Lance, annoyed, but the look on Lance’s face makes him pause. It’s real concern. Why is Lance so adamant about this?

“No Shiro. You can't. Don’t direct connect with him. I won’t let you.”

Shiro is started to get frustrated. He thought they talked about this. But now Lance is once again trying to take all of Shiro’s own burden and overwork himself.

Shiro’s patience is really starting to wear thin. He takes a calming breath. “Lance, I’m a Guide. Shields are my thing.”

“I know-”

“I’m aware that you can use them too, but you didn't have any formal training, correct? Let's not expose him to the same techniques Haggar used on you.”

The hurt look on Lance’s face like he got slapped makes Shiro almost regret his words, but he needed to get his point across. This is both for Keith’s and Lance’s sake.

They both miss the way Keith starts, and the open look of curiosity on his face quickly turns to one of ferocity. He gives Lance a sharp look, and the bitter tone of his voice jolts both Shiro and Lance into the present again.

“I don't want anything to do with that bitch. Shiro, help me.”

“Wait, Shiro, please. Keith. Stop!”

Keith grabs Shiro’s hands.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Director Zarkon, Mr. Donovan is here to see you.”

The secretary waves the man in, and closes the office door behind her.

Mr. Donovan clears his throat and approaches the silhouette of the man facing the window. The Director doesn’t turn, but grunts to acknowledge that he’s listening.

“We’ve got some intelligence for you. The Altean Facility has finally had a breakthrough on their HyperSens experiments.”

The Director unclasps a hand from behind his back, and holds out a hand.

Mr. Donovan quickly places the folder of information into his outstretched hand, and respectfully takes a step back, continuing his report as the Director flips through the papers.

“Our sources say Dr. Haggar has successfully managed to inject both Guide and Sentinel genes into a living specimen. With regular doses of HyperSens hormones, the subject has not only survived for over a year, but can now produce its own SG antibodies. Soon its blood may be able to artificially create HyperSens that have both genes, and eliminate the need for bond pairs.”

The Director closes the folder with a snap, and Mr. Donovan just manages to keep from flinching when he slowly turns away from the window. The man takes a breath and continues.

“This research leads us to believe that soon we can create our own force of super soldiers and stop wasting time training HyperSens and strengthening bonds. It would save the government trillions.”

Direct Zarkon peers at the man, and slowly places the folder on his large, impeccably clean desk. “I suppose it is time for a visit then.” He holds down a button on the desk next to the folder. “Edith, make the call to the Altean Facility, please, and see Mr. Donovan out.”

The Director catches Mr. Donovan giving a sigh of relief, and a twisted smile curls on his face. “I think you’re just the man I need for the job, Mr. Donovan. I’m finding it harder and harder to get competent people around here.”

He gestures to the door. “Edith will see you well taken care of.” Before the man can object, the secretary comes and ushers him out of the office.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

As soon as Shiro opens his eyes, he knows immediately Lance was right. This was a bad idea. A huge fucking awful idea.

Shiro’s in a volcano.

The smoke is the first thing that registers. Then he feels the heat. Closing in from every side. Surrounding him. Cutting off any escape. Shiro had thought 6 years would be enough time to work on his phobia of fire, but all of his coping strategies disappear at the sight of the terrifying reign of fire in front of him. Shiro doesn’t know if it’s his body shaking in fear, or the rumbling quake of the earth about to erupt. It could be both. Choking and eyes burning, Shiro collapses to his knees, suddenly weak.

Hands and knees begin burning where they touch the hot rock. He’s vaguely aware of pain spreading all over his body, but his brain is shutting down before he loses himself.

Suddenly, water pools around his hands and knees where he’s braced on all fours. It’s shockingly cold, but enough to pull him back from the edge. Just to the right of his metal arm is a deep pool of water, and he stumbles to it, submerging as much of himself as he can. The water brings relief, both physical and mental, and he feels a little comfort and security.

Shiro thinks he can see Lance’s reflection in the water, but instead he focuses on getting himself under control. He pulls up a shield, finds his footing, and turns back to the volcano.

Eventually he makes his way to the heart of the fire, and finds Keith standing there. The smoke whips at his face and his skin is reddened and burned. Ash and soot are smeared on his body. His eyes are closed and his arms outstretched. He looks at peace in the middle of the firestorm.

Shiro coughs, brings his shaking hands up, and visualizes a thin bubble of air coming up to protect Keith. The boy’s arms lower and Shiro strengthens the barrier. Lava splashes and hisses where it makes contact with the shield. Without the smoke blowing in Keith’s face, his eyes open to reveal a blank grey look.

Shiro watches as Keith tries to mirror him, but instead of an air bubble, Shiro’s shield around him bursts into flames. Around Keith is now a ring of fire. It flares outward like the wings of a phoenix, and Shiro drops his shield in shock, fire swallowing him whole.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Focus,” someone says urgently. “Focus on me, Shiro. You're okay.”

Hands on his face. Blessedly cool.

“Good. That’s good.”

"Is he lucid?"

"I don't think so, but he’s trying.” The hands push back his bangs and cradle his face.

“C’mon babe, you got this.”

Shiro is dimly aware of his wristband going off, and Lance’s attempt to keep the panic out of his voice. Then the hands return to his face.

“I need you.”

Oh. That's right. His Sentinel. He is supposed to be there for him. To be his Guide. He promised he wouldn't be a burden again.

Shiro pulls. Drags all his scattered thoughts together and forces it into some sort of sense.

He opens his eyes with a groan. His lungs hurt and his body burns.

“L-lance…”

Two pairs of eyes are hovering over him. Blue and grey. Lance and Keith, faces full of worry. Lance has his hands on Shiro’s face, soothing him, and wiping away tears.

“Easy, Shiro.”

“Nnng, what happened?”

“You got burned.”

“Huh?”

“By Keith’s volcano.”

Keith grabs his hand. “I’m so sorry, Shiro.”

Shiro isn't quite all together, but he notices that Lance isn’t glaring at Keith. It’s more.. a look of pity. He guesses Lance is making the connections. If Shiro is suffering this much (and he has a pretty high pain tolerance), then how is Keith handling it?

Shiro realizes he and Lance have a lot of work ahead of them in regards to Keith.

But as much as Shiro wants to help, it’s just going to have to wait until tomorrow.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆  
  
The rest of the day is spent with Keith isolating himself in the living room, and Lance curled around Shiro in bed.

Lance explains how he told the Facility that Shiro just had an episode triggered by one of the video games explosions, and to not send anyone over. Instead, he manages to bargain. He would request personnel if Shiro didn’t recover promptly. Shiro calls them back and confirms his well-being, and thanks them for not sending anyone to their room, as it would have made things worse. Not exactly true, Shiro admits after he hangs up, but better to get the Facility used to the idea that they can manage themselves even if the wristband is triggered.

“Now that Keith is here, we can’t have them bursting in unexpectedly anymore.”

When night comes, Keith doesn't join them in the bedroom, and the other two don’t fight him on it.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next morning, Shiro is better, but Keith hasn’t opened up yet, saying he can't remember anything else about the experiments, and Lance and Shiro don't push it. Shiro does, however, try to get Lance and Keith keep up the contact, but that falls apart quickly, as does the attempts to help Keith build up his shields.

Shiro argues that since Keith is showing Guide signs, and since Lance initiated the bond, it’s important that the two remain in contact, both mentally and physically, for both of their well-beings.

But Lance counters that even if Shiro is not directly involved in any bonding, he’s going feel the residual energy, and it’s going to drain him. Lance feels it’s not about strengthening the bond to help Keith, it’s about allowing Keith become independent. To help him regulate, and then help him escape. That would ensure he doesn’t become dependent on them, since there’s no way they can keep him here forever.

Shiro can’t help but feel a pang of emotion at that, although he couldn’t identify it even if he tried. He pulls Lance to into the bedroom so they don’t bug Keith.

“Lance, he needs our help. We need to support him as much as we can. We can keep him here with us.”

“Shiro, that’s not fair to him. Being cooped up in here is no life. How is that any better than what he’s already experienced? We need to help him get out.”

Throughout the day, Keith seems to be getting worse. It’s been 3 days since Keith’s rescue, and while he is steadier on his feet and his can keep his thoughts together better, his emotional state seems to be fraying. And Shiro has a sinking suspicion that it’s not due to his and Lance’s insistence that Keith open up.

He’s been more agitated than normal, or as Lance calls him, prickly. He always feels bad after, but is unable to pinpoint why he’s been snappish in the first place.

Shiro and Lance are at a loss, and it’s not until Lance comes to speak to Shiro quietly that they begin to figure it out.

“Hey Shiro, there’s something I need to tell you.” Shiro doesn’t need to read Lance’s emotions to see the guilt all over his face.

“Alright, well at least you’re telling me. What is it?”

“Last night, I went back to the room where we found Keith.”

“What?! Lance, it’s -”

“I know, I know. It’s not safe, I could have been caught, and so on. I’m sorry! I didn’t want to upset anyone by asking about it beforehand. But after that incident, I knew we needed answers. So I left after both of you were asleep. It was just a quick peek at the files and labels to see if I could discover anything real quick. There were some bottles of stuff that matched the stuff in the IV. I couldn’t decipher the medical jargon, but the forms were indicating that he was being injected daily. Shiro, he might be going through a withdrawal.”

Shiro doesn’t want to believe it, but it would answer a lot of questions.

“We’ll need to go and double check, Lance.” At Lance’s falling face, Shiro is quick to reassure him. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, Lance, it’s just...this is pretty serious. I would like to confirm for my own eyes, and see if there’s any info we can get on the Facility. Let’s go tonight.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

They check to make sure Keith is asleep before they leave. Although Keith has no love for that place, it still feels like an invasion of privacy.

Lance leads Shiro back to the storage rooms, and holds his wrist up to Storage Room #73.

Nothing happens.

“Wait, what?”

He tries again.

Shiro hisses at him. “Lance, what’s going on?”

“It’s not working! I’ve been locked out!”

“Goddamn it! Let’s get out of here!”

“But-”

Shiro yanks Lance’s arm and forces him back to their dorm.

Keith is waiting for them when they get back. Arms crossed and pissed off.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Shiro goes rogue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WE HAVE A COVER! :D :D :D  
> A commission by the amazing, incredible, wonderful, lovely, awesome, talented [drisrt](http://drisrt.tumblr.com/)!!! PLEASE CHECK OUT HER TUMBLR!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST HER ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/168208683356/a-commission-by-the-amazing-incredible)  
> 
> 
> THIS PIC MAKES MY FIC SEEM WAY MORE AWESOME THAN IT IS SORRY XD
> 
>    
> Also, unbeta'd! WE DIE LIKE MEN! (I'll find all the typos eventually. Feel free to point them out!)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

  
Today was mission day. No matter how much Keith pestered them about what they were up to last night, Lance and Shiro didn’t budge. Keith looked like he was about to get physical with Lance, but Shiro got right into his space until he took a step back and huffed.

“I can’t believe you’re keeping this from me. Did you go back to the room? Without me? What did you find? I deserve to know!”

Lance walked to the bedroom after being confronted by Keith and sat down on the bed heavily, covering his face with his hand. “Look, Keith, we’ll tell you after the mission, alright? This is too important to bust. The better we perform, the better our chances at all getting out of here.”

That got Keith to lose some of his fighting spirit, and when Shiro tried to put a comforting hard on his shoulder, Keith slunk away back to the living room.

Sure enough, in the morning, Shiro’s wristband asked them to report to the training room in preparation for their mission. As much as they want to solve the mystery of Keith, once they enter the training room, all thoughts of Keith are put in the back of their mind. It was time to focus.

Given that the previous mission was Sentinel-oriented, Lance knew this one would be Guide-centered. Unfortunately, Lance knew first-hand that those missions tended to be a little more intense as the Facility is specifically testing for emotional and mental fortitude. That’s when you got the difficult moral dilemmas, questionable ethical decisions, and saw more innocent bystanders and civilians involved. They always left Lance drained, and he wasn’t even the emotionally-focused one.

Soon the month-long bonding time will be done, and they’ll go back to the regular daily training. A permanent bond should have been formed by then, and they will return to regularly scheduled activities. That means gym, classes, training, and simulations.

Lance understands the Facility is monitoring the bonding process through the weekly missions, and limiting interaction with other HyperSens to prevent distractions, but it’s getting boring. He’s almost excited for the mission ahead, despite the anticipated challenges.

Shiro and Lance don their sleek black mission suits and stand on opposite sides of the huge room as requested. Already, Lance can tell this is not one of his favorites. He hates when they start off separated, mostly because he feels so out of control. Previously, it’s been because he can’t control what the other person is doing, but today the separation sends a ping of fear through Lance. They’ll have to meet up, but he has no idea what they have to get through to do so. Shiro sends a warm thought of comfort, and it makes Lance smile gratefully. They got this. Together.

As soon as the bell rings, they are transported to a seemingly-abandoned warehouse. The stale air is stuffy and smells vaguely of old garbage and cold metal.

MISSION OBJECTIVE. RECONVENE AND ACQUIRE THE INTEL.

Lance opens his eyes. The room is dim, so all he can see are shadows. There’s debris and grime and rust, and it’s so dark. He’s sitting on the floor, hands chained behind his back and legs crossed. His body is cold and stiff like he’s been sitting for hours. Lance always hated how realistic these simulations were. But he seems okay. He feels Shiro’s concern reach for him, and sends a reassurance back. They need to find one another, and get the intel. This is going to be mostly Shiro’s mission. He’ll have to find Lance’s location, and then they will have to find whatever the information is. Lance imagines extending a hand out to Shiro to help guide him along, and gets gratitude back. Shiro seems to be in some sort of maze, and Lance can tell he makes a few wrong turns when he gets little pricks of annoyance. Right when Lance thinks goings are going pretty well, the heavy door slides open.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Ma’am, there’s been another ping on our security system.”

A bleary-eyed woman looks up from her screen, and puts down her mug of cold coffee. Her name-tag reads Stacey. She gets up and makes her way over to where the young, tired-looking man is pointing to the screen. He was fresh-faced once, but spending any length of time managing and maintaining the technical systems of a facility the size of THE Facility was quick to drain anyone, no matter their initial excitement. Liam was no exception.

The head security technician leans over the assistant’s chain, and quickly scrolls for additional information, but is unsurprised to find nothing. Only a note that data has been accessed, but no mention of what exactly. And even that notice was a courtesy.

The man looks up. “Think it was the RockDove again?”

Stacey sighs and returns to her desk to grab her mug, draining it with a deep gulp. She refills it at the tiny coffee maker in the corner, then sits heavily in her chair.

“No doubt. Make the note and file it anyway, like all the others.”

Liam nods and grabs the paperwork, while Stacey returns to reviewing the security camera feeds.

RockDove is not the best hacker in the world. But they might be the best in the state of Altea. Their motives are questionable. They don’t do it for the money, or even as some well-meaning renegade. They are not aiding the Facility in their work, selling their secrets, or trying to save anyone, despite having the power to easily do all three. It’s well-known that the RockDove is in it for themselves. That’s all even the most informed people know about them. The anti-HyperSens organizations tried to hire RockDove, to no avail. The Facility's elite security group tried to use brute force to stop them, and when that didn’t work, asked what the ransom was. The answer was none, for RockDove was not going to stop. Neither groups could figure out exactly what RockDove was accessing, because they covered their tracks too thoroughly. All they did was let the security system register their presence.

RockDove is notorious online, but untouchable.

Liam can’t help but wonder exactly what they are searching for, and worries what will happen once they find it.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Shiro considers himself a patient man. He can put up with annoying and unsavory people, he can forgive minor inconveniences. He even doesn’t mind people who talk during movies. But mazes. Boy do those frustrate him. Intentional puzzles to trick him. Obstacles that he can’t break through with brute force. People playing mindgames with him. One could even point out that maybe it’s not the maze itself, but the lack of control that is the trigger. Painful allusions to the Holt fire. But regardless of the reason, Shiro hates mazes with a passion, and today’s mission is no exception.

He makes yet another wrong turn, and at the next dead end he can’t help the annoyed sigh that escapes him. He can feel Lance’s amusement and a warm offer of support like a friendly hand on his shoulder. That’s right. Shiro doesn’t have to go about this alone. Time to show the Facility just what he and Lance are capable of. Shiro uses Lance’s warm presence like a guiding light, steering him in the right direction. He thinks they are making pretty good time all things considered. Then a slap to the face sends him reeling, and he crashes into a wall.

No, Shiro realizes shakily as he feels his face, not him. Lance.

Shiro reaches out immediately.

_What was that?! Are you okay?_

_It's fine. It hurts. Oh. It’s the intel they are after. Apparently I have it?_

Lance sounds breathless, even through the mental connection.

_Ah, counter intelligence. They're faking a torture. That’s the mission._

Lance screams and Shiro shouts. They aren't faking it! This isn’t right!

It’s a few beats before Lance can reply. Shiro can feels the echoes of pain Lance is trying valiantly to block. His face stings, his chest hurts, and his thigh is agony.

_Shiro it's okay. This is the point of the mission. You are supposed to help me block out the pain, okay?_

The next burst of pain sends Shiro to his knees. That’s a rib. This is insane!

_Lance I cannot! What if it's not good enough?_

_Please, you have to. Or actually, hah, don't worry about it. You need to just focus on getting over here. Gotta beat the score, right?_

_Lance!_

_Ow! Fuck! I'm gonna zone, Shiro! Just get to my location. Keep it together, Shiro!_

“No Lance, no! Ugh!”

Shiro gasps as Lance severs the connection. He can still sense him and his location, but he can’t get anything. No emotions. No feelings. No Lance.

Shiro punches the wall in frustration.

Lance’s shields are up. And Shiro has a suspicion about how Lance got so good at “Guide” shields.

‘Necessity is the mother of invention,’ and all that.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Shiro does not keep it together. He gives in.

It’s too dark to see, so Shiro pats down his hips to see what’s on his person. He’s got a flashlight, a knife, a gun, and ammo. Shiro grabs the flashlight and unholsters the gun. He’s got the flashlight in his left hand and rests it above the gun in his right as he scans the area.

He reaches a hallway and turns left to put himself closer to Lance. As he turns the corner the black intent to kill warns him of an enemy behind him and he spins and shoots without hesitation. He will not let anything get between him and his Sentinel. He funnels his _fear panic anger_ into a focused killing machine. His heart turns cold and his closes himself off.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The security door buzzes and Mr. Donovan is ushed through. He tries to keep the nervousness off his face, but he can feel the sweat on his forehead. He is lead down a stifling hallway, passing windowed rooms acting as classrooms. The HyperSens inside are in various stages of sitting, listening, lounging, and relaxing. Soon the classrooms peter out and the medical and examination rooms loom before him. His guards stop before two women in lab coats. One is a young lab nurse, likely an assistant, clutching a clipboard. Next to her is Dr. Haggar herself. She looks unkempt; coat wrinkled, long gray hair falling out of a loose bun, and circles under her eyes. Mr. Donovan stops in front of her. No one speaks, and the silence is stifling. Finally, Mr. Donovan tugs on his suit and adjusts his tie, and offers his hand.

“Um, hello. I’m Mr. Donovan.”

Dr. Haggar continues to look straight into his face, unmoving.

“I, uh, was sent to inspect the specimen.”

The assistant grips her clipboard tighter, and Dr. Haggar’s frown deepens. Finally, she speaks in a flat voice, giving off an air of boredom and waving her hand idly. “Which one, Mr. Donovan? There are a number of experiments being conducted here.”

With a clearing of his throat, Mr. Donovan wipes his sweaty hands on his pant legs. “The, uh, the….” He trails off, eyeing the guards around them, and changes tactics. “Number 73. Director Zarkon sent me.”

A small gasp comes from the assistant, and Dr. Haggar’s eyes go wide in fear. A second later, she catches herself, and an unfriendly smile curls across her face. She beckons Mr. Donovan to follow her.

“Right this way, Mr. Donovan,” she croaks.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

It's not the sharp burst of pain that alerts Keith to the fact that something is clearly wrong. He knows from their explanations these missions are tough and the Facility is training for military positions. So the pain is not what sets him on edge.

It’s Shiro's blind panic. In the 4 days or so he's gotten to know Lance and Shiro, he’s learned a couple of things. Grass is green, water is wet, Lance is the high energy, emotional one, and Shiro is the chill and supportive rock.

So when he feels Shiro's panic slip into the deadly intent to kill, he knows shit’s gone down.

Keith tries and fails to find Lance, reaching out mentally, but he can't find him. Either their reluctant connection is too weak (unsurprising, since Keith didn’t want it in the first place), or Lance is damn good at shields. Maybe both. But he can feel Shiro going into crisis mode. Beautiful but deadly. Precision brought on by pure instinct. It’s not about survival, Keith realizes with dawning horror. It’s about sacrifice. Shiro has no intention of making it out unscathed. He’s gone rogue. A danger to himself and others.

Yeah, Keith’s not letting that happen. Unwillingly or not, he knows the bond’s been started, and he actually likes the two of them okay. And there’s the fact that he’s intimately familiar with the mindspace Shiro is slipping into. Keith’s been there, and it isn’t pretty.

Keith doesn't have much of a bond with Shiro thanks to their earlier disaster, but he can feel Shiro’s mind fraying at the edges.

He has no idea if this is all part of the “mission,” but this level of distress is unwarranted.

Shiro needs his help. Now, how can he help without making things worse?

Think, Keith. Think!

He can't do shields for shit, but there’s gotta be other Guide stuff he can do. Maybe he can just keep Shiro from losing himself as he rampages in his grief over Lance.

Ok. If Shiro's in crisis mode, Keith can help. That's pretty much keith's one strength. Survival.

“Alright Shiro. You wanna survive? Let's do this.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Mr. Donovan follows Dr. Haggar and her assistant to the row of experimental rooms labeled as storage rooms. They stop in front of room #72. She raises an eyebrow in a challenge, but Mr. Donovan is wiping the sweat from his brow with a handkerchief. Dr. Haggar gives her assistant a hard look and waves a hand towards the door. Her lab technician hurries to open the door before anyone can say anything.

Inside the room, a young man lays on the hospital-style bed. His auburn hair is in disarray across his sleeping face.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ♡♡♡
> 
> WELP HI THERE.
> 
> Sorry for the delay. A lot of things happened.
> 
> Finished my Master's, had a baby, then had to care for said newborn. Life is finally getting back to some sort of normal. 
> 
> Next chap is 1/3 written, so next update hopefully won't be 5 months away xD
> 
> THANK YOU FOR EVERYONE WHO'S STUCK WITH ME SO FAR. YOUR COMMENTS AND SUPPORT GIVE ME LIFE TY. (and kick my ass into writing)
> 
> Any guesses on who RockDove and subject 72 are???
> 
> **EDIT**  
> Holy crap this fic is almost 1 year old. I'm sorry for taking so long.
> 
> SHOUTOUT TO FullmetalReborn for being the best damn friend. Check out her stuff!!
> 
> ♡♡♡


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where everyone gets hurt.
> 
> EDIT: WE HAVE A PICTURE  
> A commission by the phenomenal [istehlurvz](http://istehlurvz.tumblr.com/)!!! PLEASE CHECK OUT THEIR TUMBLR!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/169447745566/a-commission-by-the-phenomenal-istehlurvz-for-my)  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas!
> 
> Happy one year to Guide & Guard!
> 
> Thank you to all of my followers!!

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Shiro’s forest is practically a tundra by the time Keith eases in. Sharp winds pull at his clothes. Stubborn mosses cling desperately to rocks as the bitter cold pierces through the exposed wasteland. Clouds full of snow cast a gloomy dark shadow over the landscape.

Shiro hasn't even noticed his arrival. Keith hunches in on himself to brace against the chill, and gets to work. Keith couldn't summon a volcano even if he tried, which is good anyway, given Shiro’s last incident. But maybe he can bring some life back to this barren land that Shiro has let himself sink into.

Keith spreads his hands and fights to bring out the slumbering sun. It almost doesn't work. In the tundra Shiro’s projecting, his sun has set for the winter. But keith is nothing if not stubborn.

Frustratingly slowly, he feels the air warming up by single degrees as the sun slowly, reluctantly, awakens. The winds slow and the clouds clear. Snow melts and plants spring up from around Keith’s feet.

This is way harder than it was with Lance’s beach. Keith's body trembles, drained, and his knees hit the wet ground. But keeps going, encouraging the air to warm and the tunda to thaw. He doesn’t let himself think about the situation Shiro’s gotten himself into.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

In the silence, Shiro’s ears ring. The recall of the gun in his hand is his sole tether to the world around him. Shiro turns the corner, gun back up as he steps over the fresh body. Good thing his gun’s got a silencer because he is making no effort to hide himself. He knows he needs to get to Lance, then figure out where the intel is. ‘Fuck that,’ he scoffs in his head. He’s just getting Lance. Screw the mission. Screw the Facility. Screw the scores. He just wants Lance safe and whole.

A dead end greets Shiro and he cusses vividly before a whisper interrupts his thoughts. It’s…..

_Keith? Wha-_

But Keith doesn’t reply. Shiro tries to push him out of his mindspace, but Keith is stubborn and refuses to leave.

Goddamn it. Shiro can’t afford any distractions right now.

He pushing again, hard, and Keith practically throws him out of his own mind.

Shiro staggers and falls against the wall, learning on it for support. Holy fuck Keith is not normal. Nobody has this much mental fortitude. It’s inhuman.

But the interruption is enough. Shiro feels control coming back to him. When he checks back into his headspace, he is shocked by the changes. The bitter winter he had felt himself sink into is quickly becoming a tropical jungle. Exotic trees sprawl overhead. Vines and ropes dangle and drape over ever exposed branch. Plants and flowers burst with color. The howling wind is replaced by loud squawks and chirps and singing bugs and it’s all so loud and bright. The sun, where it dapples down through the tree canopy burns, the air is muggy and hot, and warm rain trickles down through the jungle. Shiro gasps at the oppressing humility. It’s too different from his calming forest. Too foreign to navigate. But as he sighs, he smells the light perfume of tropical flowers. It’s a far cry from his barren wasteland. This he can actually survive. He lets Keith wrap him up in the sweet-smelling paradise, and redirect his focus to the present.

The scent pulls him back to the warehouse. Shiro really wishes he had Lance here to help him pinpoint his location, like he did to track Keith. Shiro closes his eyes and associates the emptiness of Lance’s presence with the exotic smell. If only he could track it. Make that final connection that relies on the senses.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Keith is…. on the floor? He thinks? Well wherever he was originally, he’s on the floor now. He sits up, dizzy, and tries to center himself. Damn. Shiro is nearly as strong as he is. Fuck they are both gonna have killer headaches when everything is said and done. He leaves Shiro to his jungle and tries to pull away, but Shiro is not letting him. Or, his unconscious is not letting him. Shiro is tugging, asking for something, but Keith has no idea what or why.

He tries to send a questioning ping to Shiro, but it’s weak since they never really established any connection.

_What do you want, Shiro? What do you need?_

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Shiro kicks the door open, and the sharp bang is almost as satisfying as the jump Lance’s guards make. Lance is not immediately visible. Shiro deals with the people in his way silently and efficiently. He checks a few corners, and finally finds Lance in a shadowed spot. Shiro utters a curse and slides to Lance’s side. He’s slumped over, hands bloody where the chain is digging in. Red is soaked into his clothes. Shiro gently cups and turns Lance’s face. It’s not pretty. His face is a bruised and bloody mess. Shiro frees Lance from the chains and cuddles him close. More guards attempt to enter the room, but Shiro picks them off with hardly a glance to spare. His eyes are only on Lance.

Lance blearily comes awake under Shiro’s careful ministrations. Before he can open his mouth, Shiro shushes him.

_In here, darling. Save your energy._

“I didn’t, I didn’t break, Shiro. I-”

“Lance, my love, hush. I know. You did amazing, sweetie.”

Shiro finds the least damaged part of Lance’s face, and gently kisses him.

Lance closes his eyes. “I know what they wanted, Shiro,” he whispers.

Warm arms wrap him up, and with a mental nudge from Shiro, Lance lets himself go.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The mission review happens in a blur. Shiro isn’t paying any attention. The mission is over, that’s all he’s really aware of. He just wants to reach out and cradle Lance, who looks dead on his feet. But since he’s standing at the expected parade rest, he reaches out with his mind instead. He gently sends warmth and comfort. Lance’s physical wounds are healed, being a part of the simulation, but Shiro is very familiar with the training sequences by now. Every hit and bruise stays with you long after the simulation. The mind still believes the body is hurting. He doesn’t even need to see Lance’s mind to know the wreck his mind is. It’s fragile and delicate. Emotions are raw and loose. Shiro gets a weak ping of gratitude back, before Lance sways. Shiro gives up the pretense of formality and collects Lance in his arms, turning and leaving the training room. Screw the Facility, Shiro tells himself firmly. His mate comes first.

No one stops him.

The closer they get to their room, the steadier Lance feels, until he can walk on his own. He stops outside their door, and they take a breath and share a warm look, before they steel themselves. Shiro knows they are both aware of what awaits them on the other side.

Shiro bites the bullet and opens the door. Keith is sprawled face-down on the floor of the living room. Lance goes to tiredly kneel by his side. Shiro joins him. He looks as pale and drained as Lance, and when Shiro gently moves Keith’s face to his lap, his features are lax in his faint. They can finally get a good look at him. He’s gotten more gaunt, heavy circles under his eyes. He… doesn’t look good.

“I think I know what’s up, Shiro.”

Lance pets Keith’s hair, a thoughtful look on his face. Brushes a hand down his cheek.

“It’s withdrawal from whatever they were injecting him with. But… I think the drugs were a stand-in for what he really needs.”

Lance looks up at him. “You’ve felt it, too, right? He’s not a Guide. Or a Sentinel, either. He doesn’t feel right. Natural. I…” Here he falters. “I think… I think they were trying to make one.” He looks imploringly at Shiro, like he has the answers.

Shiro feels like he’s going to be sick. “He… shit. He did say he wasn’t. Um, a HyperSens. Before.”

Lance bends so he is leaning in Shiro’s space, and touches his forehead to Keith’s.

“So what do we do, Lance? He’s obviously suffering. Not like, before, but it’s pretty bad.”

Lance gives a deep sigh and sits up, his hand still caressing Keith’s cheek.

“Well it’s like the book says. Contact is the best way to help a bond.”

Shiro sighs. He knew this was true, but he’s still reluctant to accept it.

“That’s for real HyperSens with real bonds. Neither of which are true.”

“Well it’s still a bond, despite everything. And his body is breaking down without it. I think solidifying the bond will help keep everything in check biologically.”

“Biologically?”

Lance’s hand pauses, and he meets Shiro’s concerned look head on.

“Mentally, I’m not so sure.”

Shiro lifts his hand and cups Lance’s face.

“You mean, if he even wants to bond.”

Lance leans in to the touch, and they both leave the next thought unspoken. The air is still heavy with the weight of it.

If Keith even wants to live.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Dr. Haggar’s phone rings, shattering the silence and breaking her concentration. She angrily rushes over to the wall and pick it up.

Her assistant nurse picks up the desk phone, ready to do any necessary damage control. She learned that lesson the last time someone called Dr. Haggar’s office.

Sure enough, she picks it up just in time to hear Haggar screech over the line.

“I AM NOT TO BE DISTURBED!”

She slams the phone down, not giving the caller any chance to speak. The assistant waits for the ring of the slam to settle, before addressing the caller.

“Hello. This is Dr. Haggar’s office. May I take a message?”

There’s a pause.

“Ahem, yes. Hi. I’m Dave from Bonds. We have an interesting situation come in from the training room.”

The young nurse turns to give a quick look over her shoulder. Dr. Haggar has resumed calculating dosage across the room.

“Yes? Continue.”

“Well, it seems like there’s a weird glitch going on with Pair 0146. We’ve found hints of a third presence.”

“That’s impossible.” The nurse pauses a beat. “0146. Shirogane and McClain, right?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Well, maybe it’s due to a faulty bond. They were deemed unmatchable after all. Proceed with observation. If there are any further developments, please reach me at extension 112. Do not call Dr. Haggar’s line again.”

“Understood. Thank you ma’am.”

The assistant hangs up the phone, jots a note down on her clipboard, straightens her lab coat, and returns to Dr. Haggar’s side, resuming her work seamlessly. That should buy the boy some more time, and keep Haggar off his radar.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's gonna happen next??
> 
> Gimme your guesses!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What goes up must come down. Or, the beginning of the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEW IMAGES FOR THE STORY AT THE BOTTOM.  
> I DIDN'T WANT TO SPOIL ANYTHING, SO YOU HAFTA WAIT UNTIL THE END

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

As per usual, they get a few days after the mission to recover. Apparently Shiro and Lance got a perfect score on the last mission, and Lance was lauded as something of a prodigy for his mastery of the shields. 

Keith, after recovering from his black out, seemed to have perked up. He had more energy and was eating better. And Lance and Shiro noted that he looked happier and even laughed more, but the boys wisely didn’t mention it to him for fear he would stop.

They celebrate their success by playing some of the games in the room, despite Keith’s trepidation. By now, Lance and Shiro have noticed that Keith tries not let himself relax or let his guard down, and they unanimously decide to do whatever they can to make him feel more comfortable. Lance convinces Keith to take a day off by him reminding him to take it one day at a time.

Once the recovery days have pass, the family visits will begin. Shiro and Lance agreed that Shiro’s parents will be first, just a short routine visit, then they can dedicate the rest of the time to Lance’s family. Lance is agitated and anxious, and decides a game night is overdue.

“C’mon, it’ll be fun!” Lance is practically bouncing.

“Uh, how are little figures on cardboard any fun?”

Lance gasps dramatically. 

“I will have you know, Monopoly is a classic.”

“Alright, I’ll just have to beat you then.”

“Ah! Challenge accepted!”

In the end, it turns out neither Lance or Keith get to boast their victory over the other, because Shiro whoops their assess and demolishes them both.

“That was fun,” he says cheerfully, as Keith and Lance stare at the board slack-jawed.

“What’s up next?”

“Hey Keith, grab that little red box by your foot. We’ll play that one next.

Lance and Shiro are in a happy little pile on the couch, and Keith is on the floor leaning against the couch. His shoulders have lost their tension, and while he reaches over to grab the game Lance asked for, Lance gives Shiro a little thumbs up, who gives a smile in return.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“UNO!”

Shiro jumps up with a shout of dismay, as Keith crows from the floor, holding up his one card victoriously. Lance has his head in his hands, and about 20 cards in front of him.

“Time to draw, loser!”

“I was so close!”

Lance bemoans his luck. “Can this game please be over?” 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Um, I will...fight the evil sorceress.”

Lance gives him an unimpressed look while Shiro sighs and turns to the appropriate part in the Book of Tales.

“Did you not learn anything from the last interaction? You were imprisoned and now you are lost!”

“Hey, if I ever see an evil sorceress I’m defending myself.”

“She hasn’t even done anything yet!”

“But she might! I’m being proactive!”

Lance groans as Shiro clears his throat.

“The evil sorceress sees your inevitable betrayal, and summons a powerful beast to defeat you. Ah, would you like to use your Quick Thinking skill?”

“Of course.”

“You quickly plan to lure the creature into the village and let the guards deal with it. Unfortunately, they see you coming and close the gates before you can reach them. The beast attacks and leaves you wounded. Destiny +1, story +3, gain the status Wounded.”

“Damn it!”

“Told you! It’s not good to always pick fights!”

“May I suggest a new game, guys?”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Much later, something nudges Lance awake, and he groggily sits up. Soft light plays across the peaceful scene in the living room from the window. At some point, Lance and Shiro abandoned the couch and wound up sprawled on the floor. Lance is spooning his mate, and his Guide is loose and relaxed in sleep. Keith is lying next to them, just out of reach, arms outstretched like he was trying to touch them.

Lance notes that he looks peaceful in his sleep, and that thought makes Lance smile. But there's something behind Keith. It's big and reddish and it looks like it's breathing. But between one blink and the next, the illusion vanishes and Lance is just looking at Keith's tired face. Confused and assuming it was just the remnants of a dream, Lance lays back down and wraps his slim arms tight against Shiro’s chest again. He swears he hears a deep rumble as loses the battle against sleep.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next morning, Mr. Sendak comes to visit. With a convoy of personnel. He collects the homework assignments, passes a tricorder over both Lance and Shiro’s bodies, then informs them that visitations are the day after tomorrow. He hands them two blue pills in a paper cup and turns to leave. 

Lance holds the cup in his hands, and gives Sendak and questioning look. “What’s with the pills?”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s just the prescribed dose of Bond Pills. It boosts the final connection.”

He waves the personnel out the door, and lingers in the doorway. 

“Tonight is the night the bond gets cemented. You know what you need to do.”

Then he gives Lance a long look over, before winking and turning to leave. “Do try to gentle with the boy,” he tosses carelessly at Shiro on his way out. Shiro barely keeps from throwing himself at the man as the doors close behind him.

Once he leaves, Keith comes in from the bedroom where he was waiting out of sight. 

“So, what are you gonna do?” 

“Well,” Shiro speaks up. “We really can’t trust the Facility to give us anything that’s actually beneficial. It’s probably drugs. You saw that look Sendak gave you. It’s got to be bad news.”

Lance hums. “Hmm, yeah, you’re right. On the other hand, this is expected of us, and if we want to maintain our advantage, we’ll need to present the correct reaction.” Lance picks up a pill and studies it. “What if this really is the final push to cement the bond? What if not taking this ruins our chance of truly bonding?”

Keith comes from behind Lance and peers at the pill Lance is holding. “You guys know what my thoughts on the matter are. If HyperSens and bonds are natural, then nature will find a way. Who knows, this might even poison what could be a normal bond.”

The three boys look at one another with troubled looks. 

“Well,” Lance hedges. “There’s no rule that says only two people have to take the pills. If we split them, then we each will feel the effects, but it will be in a smaller dose.”

Shiro puts his hand on Lance’s shoulder, and Lance returns paper cup to the counter.

“Normally, that’d be an ok plan,” he says. “But since Keith is already dealing with the aftermath of Haggar’s experiments, it’s probably best not to impose any unknown substances on him. We don’t know how his system will handle it.” 

Lance still has the concerned look on his face, and Shiro gathers Lance up in his arms and gives the top of his head a kiss.

Keith crosses his arms and leans back against the kitchen counter. 

“Another factor to consider is the idea that these pills could be the exact same stuff they were injecting in me. So who knows, it might even help keep the edge off.” Keith laughs bitterly, and Lance and Shiro turn to him in shock.

“Are you still in pain? Why didn’t you say anything!”

Keith shrugs. “There’s not much that can be done, and you guys were busy with mission stuff. Didn’t seem like a good time.”

Shiro gives him a quick look over. “I’m sorry we didn’t notice, Keith. We thought you were feeling better. You certainly look better than you first did.”

Keith shrugs again. “I was, for a little bit. But ever since entering Shiro’s mindscape, it’s been this…” He trails off.

Lance puts a gentle hand on Keith’s arm. “A what, Keith?”

“It’s more like a burn, than an electric shock. Like, a heat.”

“A heat, huh? Maybe you’re just a hot-head!”

Shiro gives Lance a stern warning the same time Keith springs from his lean against the counter. 

“I dare you to say that again, Lance!”

“Hot-head! Hot-head! Hot- WOAH!”

Lance just barely dodges Keith’s grab, and Shiro sighs as the young men taunt one another around the dorm room. 

No one notices one of the pills is missing from the cup.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The RockDove pauses in their search. A ping pops up next to a familiar number. Pair 1046. Hormone levels are spiking. 

They quickly intercept the automatic alert to the Facility personnel, and pull up the spiking stats to the big screen. Today is the final bond day, and it looks like the process is starting. Better to keep watch before taking any action.

It was pure luck that they had caught the first mishap the two had. A failsafe they had programmed initially because they knew the personality types of the two HyperSens, and was aware that the Sentinel was an impulsive one. That failsafe was the only reason that Sentinel and his Guide were still under the radar and not on 24 hour surveillance. Their middle of the night adventure, and then the attempted repeat to access Room #73, almost cost them all everything. RockDove shakes their head and makes a mental note to implant cameras into their dorm room while they on family visitations. They need more eyes on these two. 

Especially since the asset was now in their custody. That 3rd presence was an unaccounted for anomaly, and was the RockDove’s first and only mistake. They won't make another.

Unfortunately for all of them, it looks like Haggar is now on to them. Those spiking levels are not normal, and can only be from one person. The pills must be one of her creations. Since it looks like the Sentinel had taken the bait and fallen for the trap, it might be time to put the plan in motion.

RockDove opens a window and sends two quick emails.

This might be it. Finally, after 6 years, their search might be over.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Mr. Director, I’m sorry to interrupt, but our informant tells us there’s now a tri-bond.”

Director Zarkon growls, and turns from the person sitting in front of him to face the office door.

“Don’t waste my time. That’s impossible.”

“I am aware, sir. But our information has never been wrong here before.”

“What of the artificial HyperSens?”

“Nothing to report, sir. Still no update.”

“Very well. Collect it. If the Alteans won’t focus on our contract like agreed, then we shall have to complete it on our own.”

“What of the triad, Sir?”

“Let them play. If anything promising comes up we shall intervene there, too. But for now, the asset is more important. Let the loss of their beloved experiment be a warning not to cross me.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Lance swears he’s hallucinating. That definitely wasn't one of the mentioned symptoms of Bonding.

It’s been about an hour since he snuck the pill, and his senses are going haywire. It’s only because of his crazy shields that Shiro hasn’t picked up on it yet, but he’s already exhausted his Sentinel powers from yesterday's mission, and knows soon he’ll be exposed. His sense of smell is going crazy, noises are flickering between being too loud and too quiet, and there’s something wrong with his vision. He keeps seeing these animals. 

Sitting on the bed, lying on the couch, playing with the shadows in the sun.

One is a gorgeous silver cat. It has thick fur, beautiful spots, and a long, graceful tail. It likes to sit and stand guard, and seems to gravitate to Shiro. It almost looks like a snow leopard, but those live nowhere near, and definitely not inside the Facility. 

The other is a strange animal Lance can’t identify. At first look it was a giant wolf, but the colors are all wrong. It’s a brilliant orange-red like a fox, and it’s tail is nearly twice the length of its body. It’s almost always sleeping, and seems to prefer to rest its head on Keith’s lap.

Neither of the other boys seem to notice anything, so Lance knows something is seriously wrong with him. 

“Lance, are you alright?”

Shit. Caught already.

“Uhm, yeah. Sure.”

“You’re not paying any attention to what we’re saying.” Keith is sitting on floor, and his wolf fox thing is again pillowing its head on Keith’s legs.

“Sorry. What were you saying?”

Shiro gives him a raised eyebrow, but repeats his question. The cat on his shoulder is giving Lance a look, staring at him unblinkingly. 

“It’s about what we saw that night. Keith wants to know, and we’ve been putting it off long enough. It might help us decide what to do with the pills.”

“Yeah. Sure. No problem.”

Lance shakes his head and tries to turn his attention back to Shiro.

He and Keith are talking about the now-locked door, turning to Lance, and when he nods in agreement, they continue on. His head feels like it’s full of cotton, and the room feels warm.

“Is your wristband not working anymore?”

Lance focuses in again just in time. “Uh, good question. How do we check that without breaking into anything?”

“We can’t really. But let’s look at why it might not be working. Do you think we got discovered?”

Keith chimes in. “How would we even know if we were?”

“Well, it would have alerted someone. Like when Shiro got burned by your mindspace.” Keith’s canine lifts its head and perks it’s ears toward Lance as Keith nods in reply to Lance.

“That’s a good point. Let’s start by looking at the latest alerts. Lance, come here. Let’s start with yours.”

Lance tries to shuffle over to Shiro, but stumbles on the way. Shiro quickly catches him.

Shiro’s eyes go wide when his hand touches Lance’s arm, and he is not gentle when he pokes into Lance’s mind in panic. Lance’s shield shatters, and his mind is left bare to Shiro. Lance loses his footing and collapses into Shiro’s arms, and Shiro gently lowers them both to the floor.

Keith jumps up from the floor in an instant, and at Shiro’s panicked look towards the kitchen, connects the dots and runs to grab the paper cup. His violent cuss is all the confirmation Shiro needs, and he bows his head to Lance’s fevered one.

“Oh Lance. What have you done?”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
> 
> Commissions by the ABSOLUTELY AMAZING [HYPHERRR](http://hypherrr.tumblr.com/)!!! PLEASE CHECK OUT THEIR TUMBLR!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE!](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/170518206046/commissions-by-the-phenomenal-hypherrr-for-my-fic)  
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
> 
> Also, you knew if it started happy and fun it'd get angsty at the end. Next chapter has the SMUT just so you're prepared. The ball is rolling and the plot thickens. Any predictions for what's in store?
> 
> ((And anyone who guesses what that last game they played was, EXTRA CREDIT. It's one of my favorite games of all time!))


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the chapter where everything turns out just fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEW IMAGES FOR THE STORY AT THE BOTTOM.
> 
> I DIDN'T WANT TO SPOIL ANYTHING, SO YOU HAFTA WAIT UNTIL THE END.
> 
> SWEET HAPPY BOYS FINALLY GET A BREAK THANK GOD.
> 
> This chapter is nearly 3 times longer than usual because I love you all so much

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

“Nice kitty,” Lance says as he goes to pet Shiro’s fuzzy cat. It comes to sit next to Lance. It is big, and fluffy, and soft, and it purrs a deep rumble as it puts up with Lance’s sloppy pats.

 

He’s warm, and it feels like the holidays as his family’s place. Bundled in blankets in front of the fireplace drinking hot cider. Warm, but cozy warm. A special warm that you put up with because it means happy and safe.

 

Unfortunately, he’s starting to get to the point of uncomfortable. Maybe he’s too close to the fire? Lance tries to crawl away from the heat, but he can’t escape the grip it has on him, and a few minutes later he’s panting from the exertion.

 

His hearing has peaked out and now there’s just echos ringing, making it hard to hear. But he thinks he hears someone calling to him.

 

“Lance, calm down, I got you. Help should be coming soon.”

 

The clothes on him are both too soft and too rough, and he’s still seeing the weird visions. Everything is too bright and has a halo around it. Lance shakes his head, but moans and grimaces after. Maybe he shouldn’t have taken that pill. But he was worried about…something? Someone? The big silver cat lays its long tail in Lance’s lap, and his pets it absentmindedly. On Lance’s other side, Keith’s huge russet canine is licking his arm. The sensation helps ground him.

 

His Guide enters his view. His wonderful Guide is glowing so bright, so hot. But instead of the beaming smile usually reserved for him, his Guide has a frown on his face. Did he do something wrong? Lance tries to reach out for him, but hands intercept his, and cup his face.

 

“Shiro,” he says. Or tries to. It comes out as a whine. The silver cat stalks away, and the canine jumps off the couch.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Shiro sits on couch with Lance wrapped up in his arms, and absentmindedly strokes his cheek. He is delirious, muttering about cats and the heat. Shiro reaches out to touch Lance’s forehead again. His temperature is rising.

 

“Damn it. Where are those damn Facility personnel?”

 

Keith comes over with water, and sets it on the coffee table.

 

“Umm, is he ok?” 

 

Shiro gives Keith a look, and Keith backpedals.

 

“Er, I mean, obviously he’s not. What should we do?”

 

“Well, he is pretty warm. I’m starting to think we were right about those pills. I knew they couldn’t mean anything good. I would have thought his wristband would have gone off by now. Hey, can you hand me that water?”

 

Keith picks up the full glass and bring it over. Shiro props Lance in his arms and tries to coax him into drinking a bit, and is only partially successful. Lance grows heavy in his lap, and Shiro lets him lie back down on the couch.

 

Shiro looks up at Keith, and sees his concerned look mirrored. 

 

“Do you really think they would come?”

 

Shiro gives him a sharp look. “What do you mean?”

 

Keith shrugs. “Well, if they were the ones to give us the pills, this is probably an expected reaction. I mean, they’ve come for minor things before. If this was something unusual, they would be here already.”

 

“Crap.” Shiro feels any hope he had quickly leaving. Of course Keith is right. He knew Sendak was up to no good. He must’ve known this was going to happen. Suddenly, all those extra comments make sense.

 

_ “Tonight is the night the bond gets cemented.  _

_ You know what you need to do.  _

_ Do try to gentle with the boy.” _

 

Shiro cusses vehemently. “God fucking damnit!”

 

Keith reels back, startled. “What?”

 

“It’s an aphrodisiac! Sendak knew exactly what he was doing. We’re supposed to ‘cement the bond’ today. Shit!”

 

Color drains from Keith’s face. Then he clenches his fist. “I knew it! I fucking knew it! It isn’t just me the Facility is screwing over.” Keith takes a deep breath, holds it a second, then blows it out forcefully.

 

“What do we do? What can we do? Make Lance sweat it out?”

 

Here, Shiro looks taken aback. “I...I don’t know. I’m sure the Facility has some awful backup in store. I can only wonder what they would have done to us if Lance hadn’t taken the pill. He was right about expected results, unfortunately. I bet they are tracking our every breath with these damn wristbands.”

 

“So,” Keith starts, “if they are looking for expected results, you’re going to have to do your thing, Shiro.” He can’t look Shiro is the eye as he says it, choosing instead to pick at the carpet. 

 

“I- what?” Shiro looks up startled.

 

“Haven’t you guys, you know, like what’s in the book. Sexu-”

 

“No! Um, not yet.”

 

At the look Keith gives him, Shiro sighs and clarifies.

 

“We were...waiting for the right time. When Lance was ready, if he wanted to.”

 

“Hate to break it to you, Shiro, but he’s gonna want to soon.”

 

The boy in question groans quietly from the couch, and starts showing signs of discomfort. His brown pinches and his mouth makes a frown.

 

“I know,” Shiro says gently, and he pets Lance’s hair. “But we didn’t want it like this. But maybe…”

 

Maybe if he can get inside Lance’s mindspace, he can do his Guide duties and help Lance stabilize. Then they can have a proper conversation about this.

 

“Alright, I have to do something. I’m going inside, see if I can help from there.” Keith nods, and sits on Lance’s other side.

 

Inside Lance’s mind is a crazy jumble. Things are too much, too bright, too loud. Normal sensation levels are way off. Shiro closes his eyes and tries to nudge them into some sort of normality. But something isn’t working. There’s a thick fog in the way.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Keith quietly excuses himself and leaves the two in the living room. He’s aching again. The good mood he’s been having over the last day or so is long gone, and the pain that returned after helping Shiro during his last mission is back in full force now that he doesn’t have the distraction of worrying about Lance. He returns to the kitchen and falls into the seat heavily. Repressed thoughts emerge. Doubts about escape, survival, freedom. A normal life, as Lance was putting it. A life outside of the Facility, as Shiro was describing. He wasn’t deaf. He was privy to their fights about what to do with him. Lance wants to help him escape and be free and independent. Shiro wants to include him in their bond and use his help to take down the Facility. Safety in numbers.

 

His headache returns with a vengeance, and Keith drops into the seat at the counter and holds his head in his hands, tugging at his hair. Sharp pain spikes with each breath. He groans, and reaches out blindly in hopes of finding a water glass.

 

Instead, his hand hits the paper cup with the remaining pill. Keith pauses, and looks up at it.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The assistant double checks her calendar. It was the final day for Pair 1046. By the end of the day, their bond would be complete, according to the Facility. Little did they know, they were already bonded. It was weak, sure, but it formed 100% naturally and without the need for any aides or outside inference. She had been watching their levels carefully ever since she had gotten the call about the 3rd presence. 

 

Incredibly enough, although McClain and Shirogane had slowly formed a loose bond, this 3rd connection was formed quickly, and seemed to be the final trigger that sealed them together. It seemed like their bond was counteracting Subject 73’s withdrawal, allowing him to produce the HyperSens genes naturally without the aid of the injections. Their bond was the key to his survival.

 

The young assistant makes some final notes on her clipboard, and, after double checking the empty room, pulls out a tablet and takes a quick picture of her notes, before sliding it back into her pocket. It was a custom piece designed by RockDove themselves, programed to upload any pictures directly to her secret online encrypted database, and wipe itself of data immediately after upload. 

 

This latest information completes her diagnosis of 1046 and their 3rd. She has everything she needs now to ensure their mental, physical, and emotional health once they leave the Facility. Which, according to her watch, should be in about 24 hours. A mishap during the visitations. It was already put into motion. 

 

A ping from her tablet startles her, and she yanks it out of her pocket in shock. No notifications were supposed to come through, unless during an emergency. 

 

RD:\\--\\\ COMPROMISED

RD:\\---\\\ SECURE ASSET

RD:\\----\\\ TABLET.LOCKDOWN

RD:\\-----\\\ 00.00.03

RD:\\------\\\ 00.00.02

RD:\\-------\\\ 00.00.01

RD:\\--------\\\ 00.00.00

 

Shocked, she nearly drops the tablet. 

 

A shrill ring echoes throughout the room, and the assistant quickly runs over to the phone on the wall.

 

“Hi, it’s Dave from Bonds. Just letting you know we just gave Pair 1046 their Bond Pills.”

 

The assistant cursed inwardly, but cleared her throat and managed to keep a civil tone. “Thank you for the update. Can you give me the ID# of the personnel in case I need to follow up?”

 

“Sure thing. AF00021. Anything else ma’am?”

 

“Yes. I will take full responsibility for this pair. Please divert any information directly to my comm.”

 

“Got it. Transfering all communication to the Gunderson line now. Anything else I can do for you?”

 

“Thank will be all, thanks.”

 

A click, and the line went dead.

 

Employee AF00021. Sendak. Giving unauthorized Bond Pills. Once again taking matters into his own hands. Likely at the will of someone else, according to the message she just got from the RockDove.

 

Nurse Pidge Gunderson, personal assistant to Dr. Haggar, infiltrator of the Altean Facility and undercover spy, sighs deeply. Bond Pills are only for unwilling pairs, spiking hormones, pheromones, and basically acting like an aphrodisiac to ease the bonding. It’s intended to make both parties receptive, and allow for a smoother “connection” so to speak. 

 

Given the fact that her pair was a natural bond, Bond Pills were unnecessary, and would likely even screw things up for them. And if Subject 73 happened to take them… Well, to say he would be in serious trouble was an understatement. Not only because of what they injected in him, but because he was part of a close tribond, previously unheard of, there was no saying what the pills would do to them all. Even if he didn’t take them himself, the others taking them could set him off.

 

Pidge shudders and steels herself. Determined, she dons her lap coat and runs quickly out of the lap.

 

She’s got some work to do before the pick up. Time to work her magic and try to undo some of the damage, or there would be no hope of getting these kids out.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

 

Shiro exits the living room and goes to find Keith. His attempts to enter Lance’s mindscape were unsuccessful, and seemed to simply rile the boy up more. Shiro leaves Lance to his rest, smoothing his hair until he fell asleep, and contemplates their next move. With Lance down for the count, their plans will have to change. Shiro can start brainstorming ideas with the other boy, sees if they can make any headway.

 

It’s time to discuss their plans for getting out, and hopefully address their whole bond situation. A three-way bond is completely unheard of. But Shiro stopped being normal the moment he entered the Facility. Same with Lance. Both were the odd ones out, unique, different, and special, Shiro has come to learn.

 

Shiro hasn’t had the guts to bring it up to Lance. He knows Lance hopes to smuggle Keith out and give him freedom and independence; the control to rule his own life. He warns Shiro against getting too attached, keeping Keith from getting some misguided notion that he had to pay them back. A bond with him would permanently ruin any chance of preventing that. Shiro knows this. 

 

However, Shiro  _ wants _ Keith to join them. Yes, strategically, bonding with Keith, if possible, will give them some power. If they are discovered, the fact that they already bonded with Keith will give them some protections. Healthy bonds just aren’t broken. It’s not done. They might be able to use that as leverage if there are any hiccups in taking down the Facility. That is, if the Facility decides to play by their own rules. 

 

But the part Shiro hasn’t told Lance, is that, he likes Keith. He’s attracted to him, both mentally and physical. His fighting spirit. His troubled past. He unwillingness to get close, despite being touch-starved. His pessimistic attitude that he will never get out. His never experiencing good things. Shiro wants to show him the world.

 

Of course, Shiro is too much of a gentleman to let those things sway him. He will talk to Keith about what the boy wants out of all of this, and then go from there. He enters the kitchen and sees Keith slouching at the counter, head resting on his hand. The paper cup is in his other hand.

 

“Keith!”

 

The boy jerks alert, and the cup falls out of his hand. The unmistakable sounds of a pill hitting the wood floor captures both of their attention.

 

Shiro runs over to pick it up as Keith rubs his hands through his hair. He returns the cup to the counter and gives Keith a hard look. Keith melts under his gaze, face turning pink as he looks away.

 

“I wasn’t…”

 

Shiro raises an eyebrow, and Keith deflates.

 

“Okay, yes, I was thinking about it. But hear me out!” he blurts as Shiro goes to throw the cup in the trash. “Just wait. Let me explain.”

 

And so he does.

 

He explains his worries about not being a true HyperSens, and what that might mean when he gets captured.

 

_ If _ , Shiro wants to say, but he doesn't. He knows it's a long shot.

 

Keith explains what he discovered when reading the bond books left for Shiro and Lance to read. About how the breaking of bonds usually results in death. About what will happen if he bonded with them, and if the Facility try to break the bond.

 

“Since you guys are considered one of the highest ranking pairs, they won’t let anything happen to you. If I bond with you, it might mean extra protections for me.”

 

It’s sound logic, one Shiro can’t argue with.

 

But Lance would counter with the fact that it would ruin any chances Keith might have of escaping and getting free. He would have to stick with them and their long-term plan to undermine the Facility. 

 

Shiro says as much out loud.

 

“You’ve sacrificed enough to the Facility, Keith. No one is asking you to risk any more. You don’t have to stay til the end.”

 

When that doesn’t seem to convince him, Shiro brings the paper cup back over and sits next to Keith.

 

“Keith this could really mess you up. Its’ made for HyperSens. Or at least that’s what they say. Either this is what they were giving you, or it will fight with what you have. There’s just too many unknowns.”

 

Keith looks at Shiro and speaks so softly, Shiro has to strain to hear him.

“Shiro, I want it.”

“I… I can’t keith. I’m sorry. There’s a chance you can still be free from this.”

 

“Free to die in some ditch? If I bond with you guys, they can’t separate us. Even when I’m discovered.”

 

“Well, they can. Bond rehabilitation.”

 

Keith frowns at him. “But that’s only in case of death.”

 

“Are you sure? Are you willing to bet your life on it? When has the Facility ever followed the rules?”

 

“So are you proposing that you take the pill instead?” And ruin my chances of bonding with you?”

 

“No! Yes! I don’t…” Shiro gives a low growl of frustration, unable to put his thoughts into words. Unable to come up with an answer.

  
  


Keith takes pity on him. “Well, there’s one thing we can try. We both take the pill. Split it up as equally as we can. Then they have to deal with all 3 of us.”

 

The Guide huffs. “It’s an idea. I still would rather you sneak out and get as far from here as you can.”

 

“That’s not a guarantee, and you know it, Shiro. I’m pretty sure I’m screwed anyway, so it might as well be on my terms. There’s a reason I chose that volcano, remember. ”

 

Keith looks so lost, small, vulnerable. But his words speak of inner strength beyond what Shiro himself has.

 

Shiro decides to ask.

 

“If this wasn’t such a life and death situation, would you-”

 

There’s a thump and Lance gives a pained cry. Keith and Shiro look at one another in surprise before running back to the couch.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

 

Shiro rushes into the room, but darts to Lance’s side as the boy shakily tries to stand up.

 

“Lance! Are you okay? You should be resting!”

 

It takes a few tries for Lance to get a grip on Shiro as his feeble pats slide off his arm. Finally, he manages a weak grab at Shiro’s neck.

 

Lance’s hand is burning, and his eyes are slightly unfocused, but he’s trying to meet Shiro’s.

 

“Guide.”

 

Immediately, Shiro is sucked in.

 

The first thing Shiro is aware of is the heat. It nearly rival’s Keith’s world. But unlike Lance’s usual mindscape, when Shiro opens his eyes, it looks like he’s back in the living room. Like he didn’t go anywhere at all. The only difference is that everything has a slight tint of red. The air is heady, and sounds are muffled like he was underwater. Lance is still in his arms, looking at Shiro with an expression on his face Shiro can’t identify. 

 

“Huh? Lance, what is this?”

 

Lance doesn’t answer him, but pulls him in for a kiss instead.

 

Shiro jerks back, shocked, and when he looks around the world seems to be back to normal. Only, not. The pink hue is gone, but the air still has that fuzzy quality to it. Lance is right where Shiro left him, but his head is down.

 

“Lance?”

 

Lance looks up with a pleading look. “Guide, please, it’s too much.” He reaches for Shiro, and tugs him in closer. “Please,” he says again.

 

“What do you need, Lance? I’m right here.”

 

“Shiro, Guide, I can’t, I’m…” Lance clenches his eyes closed and his body trembles. 

 

Keith can see Lance try to fight it off, but he knows he’s suffering needlessly. Anyone can tell Lance and Shiro are deeply connected. Keith pulls Shiro down and whispers a suggestion. To talk to Lance before he’s not coherent enough to be able to consent. Shiro frowns deeply in lieu of a reply, but sits Lance down and cups his face between his hands, making sure he has Lance’s full attention. He asks.

 

Lance is nodding his head and tugging on Shiro, trying to get them moving. He tries to get up and slips, but Shiro swings him up into his arms, and carries him to the bedroom.

 

Keith returns to the kitchen counter and the damn paper cup. He pretends the burn in his heart is from his damn drug withdrawal. Despite his earlier convictions, he starts to rethink his decision. If he takes the pill, will he have the same reaction as Lance? Will he be rendered as vulnerable? Would he be anbe to live with himself if he ended up like that? Does he want to be with them both like that? He coughs through another wave of pain, and swallows down some more water. Or would it take the pain away?

 

In a different world, he’d like to date them maybe. Allow himself to feel drawn into their warmth and security, like he had briefly the previous day when playing games. But if he took the pills, how much would still be real? Would their whole relationships be tainted and artificial like his own HyperSens genes?

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

 

Shiro’s hands burn where they roam across Lance’s skin. His nerves are sending electricity down his spine. Lance feels slightly dizzy; slow and heady. Like the air is too thick. It’s like being drugged, but it’s Shiro doting on him. Shiro, swept up in the feedback though their mental link, lets himself get swept up in it all. He’s riding on Lance’s pleasure, and it pulls him along like a riptide.

 

Shiro’s hands crawl up Lance’s shirt, exposing his tan skin.

 

He leans in and hides his head in the crook of Lance’s neck. His breath is like fire. Shiro mouths at his skin, triggering more shocks to shoot down his spine and adding to the sweet spot building in his pelvis.

 

Both of them are panting. Shiro pulls Lance’s hands over his head and leans in, settling over Lance heavily. Lance sinks into the bed and lets his body go lax and pliant. Shiro latches and sucks on Lance’s neck, earning him a low moan and an aborted thrust. A quick bite and Lance throws his head back with a strangled cry. He’s trembling all over, body overstimulated. Then Shiro comes in for a searing kiss and Lance melts away. One hand remains pinning Lance’s wrists while the other drifts purposely down Lance’s body. It flicks a nipple, trails lightly down his abdomen, and firmly palms his groin. Lance groans through his pants, body trying to arch.

 

Another bite and Lance cries out, hips thrusting against Shiro’s thigh. Lance is gasping at this point.

 

“Shiro, ah, oh god!”

 

“You’re alright baby. I got you.” Shiro’s voice is low and gravely with arousal. It’s a testament to the effect Lance is having on him. Lance isn’t the only one being affected here.

 

“Why is it, hng, so hot? I can’t-”

 

“Yes, baby. You can. It’s the bond you feel. Telling you to be claimed. Open your mind and find mine. My intention. Feel how you make me feel, Lance.”

 

Lance opens his mind and Shiro gives a groan. Lance gets sucked in and can feel the feedback and suddenly he  _ feels _ the two of them and it’s too much and-

 

“Come on, baby.”

 

Fire is racing, burning him from the inside out, threatening to consume him. Shiro is right there, but instead of shielding him from the fire, Shiro drags him in. The sensations build, Lance is gasping breathlessly, Shiro pushing him deeper until he’s swallowed up.

 

Lance comes with a cry that Shiro silences with a deep kiss.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

He’s not sure what it is that wakes him up, but Lance comes awake with a gasp. He jolts up, and it’s only Shiro’s warm presence that relaxes him. Shiro guides him back down to the bed, and turns to face him.

 

“Feeling better, love?”

 

Lance hums in noncommitment, taking stock of himself. He’s a little achy, but his mind is clear and his thoughts sharp. He checks in with his mindscape, and it shocked by how vibrant everything is. At his gasp, Shiro leans over, tracing his fingers over Lance’s face.

 

“Everything alright?”

 

“Shiro, do you feel that?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Curious, Lance checks Shiro’s mindscape, too.

 

The calm forest scene is teeming with life and color. Instead of just an afterimage, like a fading memory, Lance  _ feels _ the world around him. Shiro’s world. It’s as real to Lance as it must feel to Shiro. With the feeling of the wind in his hair and the chill in the air, Lance realizes he would have a tough time telling the difference between Shiro’s mindscape and a real forest. 

 

Excitement pulls at Lance and distracts him enough to take a mental step back. Lance feels himself smile in response. Shiro’s emotions are stronger than over. It must be the fully realized bond.

 

Wait, bond! Oh shit!

 

Lance yanks himself back to the present so quickly it leaves him breathless. The shock tumbles into horror and is followed swiftly by bitter shame and embarrassment. He hides his face in his hands and tries to turn away. Shiro is probably dizzly with how quickly Lance’s emotions pulse, but he doesn’t let it show. Instead, he gathers Lance up in his warm arms.

 

“It’s okay, Lance. Not your fault. You did the best you could with the available options.” 

 

Lance offers a mild groan of complaint. 

 

“But let me know how you feel? Any pain? Do we need to talk? Are you okay with this?”

 

He can’t verbalize his words, so Lance lets his emotions speak for him. He sends  _ acceptance, happiness, confusion, and… _

 

_ Love. _

 

Now it’s Shiro’s turn to be rendered speechless. His mouth gapes, but no sound escapes. But after a beat he gives a happy squeal that has Lance raising his eyebrows and widening his eyes in shock, before being completely enveloped in Shiro's tight embrace.

 

“I love you, too, Lance.”

 

Lance allows himself a moment to get lost in the warmth of it all, before he pulls back a bit to look at Shiro.

 

“Well, not how I imagined first declarations of love to go, but we got there in the end, didn’t we?”

 

Still giddy, Shiro just nods.

 

“Now we just got to get loner boy in on this, too. Where’s he at?”

 

Lance thinks if Shiro smiles any harder it will break his face.

 

“He was in the kitchen last I checked. But I kind of got, um, sidetracked.”

 

“Well, let’s go get him. There’s something I wanna tell him.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The worst part of the whole thing is that he didn’t even touch the pill. He didn’t need to. The pain ripped through him shortly after Shiro and Lance went to the bedroom. The sensation of his mind and body tearing. If Lance got intense pleasure because of the pill, Keith was feeling the complete opposite. And he hadn’t even gotten a chance to take it yet.

 

On the floor of the living room, Keith is dying inside. The pain is nearly unbearable now. He feels like he’s burning away. Like he’s too close to one of his volcanoes. He’s hyper aware of everything. The sounds of Shiro and Lance are too loud. The air in the room is too hot. His skin itches under clothes, and he weakly tried to scratch at it. Keith feels himself falling. Flames lick at his sides. The smoke chokes him. The lava is oozing closer. Dimly, he’s aware that he’s zoning. He’s losing himself in the senses, but there’s nothing he can do about it. 

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

 

Keith’s eyes shine with unshed tears, and his face is almost a grimace with how hard he clenches them closed. He whimpers, and Shiro is right there, kissing his neck slowly.

 

“Shhh. We got ya babe.”

 

Hands reach out to hold his, and Keith grips them tightly. “We’re here,” Lance says, as he strokes the inside of Keith’s wrists. Tears fall from his closed eyes, and he shakes.

 

Lance and Shiro share a look. Keith is burning before them, but he’s too scared to let go. To let them in. Keith’s fever is alarmingly high. Lance and Shiro know what to do; but they are still worried. Almost too much to focus, but they are aware this could be his only chance. The seriousness of the matter help them focus on task. 

 

Shiro gives Keith a nudge, begging him to look at him, to read his question. Keith nearly falterers, at risk of being yanked under the oppressive pain, but manages to answer Shiro. 

 

_ Yes. _

 

Lance kisses the hand in his grip. Shiro gently tugs Keith’s hair back for a kiss. Keith tries to squirm away, but Lance keeps him in place. It’s for his own good. The boy's panting, chest heaving. Whether it be from them or the fever is unknown. It could be both. Either way, they need to hurry this up. If only Keith wouldn’t try so hard to fight them. Now they are facing a time limit.

 

“Mmm, we should’ve done this days ago.” Lance’s musings slip out as he’s stroking fingers lightly up and down Keith’s sides. He’s thinking about how little time they have left to save Keith, but the focus of their attention seems to take it differently, and a breathy moan slips out.

 

Shiro smooths the hair from his forehead to look Keith in the eyes.“C’mon Keith. You need this. You can let us in. It’s okay. Trust us.”

 

Keith shakes his head, and chokes out words from clenched teeth. “No. I can’t. They tried this before. To trick me. And I fell for it.”

 

Dread shoots through Shiro’s veins like ice water. His hands fumble. Lance pulls Keith into his arms as Shiro tries to compose himself. 

 

“They. What? Haggar tricked you? With this?”

 

Keith whimpers in Lance’s arms. Lance is just petting his hair. Soothing.

 

Their touches are helping to ground him a little. Keith focuses hard to get his thoughts out quick before the fire returns. “They were trying something new. Pleasure instead of pain. I didn’t know until it was too late. They got their injections in me. Tricked my mind into thinking what they wanted it to. That. That hurt the most. I had no control. Never again. Never again!”

 

Lance buries his face in Keith’s neck, trying to hold back tears. Shiro swoops them both into a tight embrace, like he can protect them from the world. Keith gasps out a sob, body on overdrive as pleasure and pain fight for dominance over his skin, the burn returning full force.

 

Keith gives a soft moan and Shiro and Lance feel his determination ring through their minds. He lets his walls collapse, and in the onslaught, his body gives out. 

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

  
  
  
  


In a final act of desperation, they give him the pill.

  
  
  
  


And amazingly, that night, everything turns out alright.

  
  
  
  
  


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Commissions by the ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC [EGGSYEAGLE](https://eggsyeagle.tumblr.com/)!!! PLEASE CHECK OUT THEIR TUMBLR!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE!](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/171083625891/commissions-by-the-fantastic-eggsyeagle-for-my)  
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆  
> Ha! We've discovered the identity of the assistant. Anyone see it coming? XD
> 
> What's next in store for these boys?
> 
> Please, gimme your thoughts!!! ♡
> 
> EDIT: Also, come yell at me on [tumblr](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/)!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things look up; things crash down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guardian Spirits make an appearance! New pic at the bottom.  
> And Hunk and Lotor show up, too!
> 
> Thank you everyone for your patience. I'm trying to get updates out monthly. Your comments inspire/guilt me into writing. The plot is thickening, but we still got a long way to go. The plot ball is rolling and won't stop anytime soon!
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to Eunioa and darkpurpledesire. You two kicked my butt into gear so TY! Please come see me on tumblr and I will fill prompts for you &<3

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The pill seems to have the opposite effect on Keith than it did on Lance. It’s information they’ll file away for later, but right now, Keith is their priority.

Once Keith lets go, Shiro and Lance move in. Like the Japanese Kintsugi technique of mending broken pottery, they filled his crumbling cracks with molten gold. Not trying to hide his damage, but acknowledging it. Celebrating it. A conscious choice to keep the ruined item around, and heal the defects because of its original worth.

As Lance guides Keith down from his high, Shiro’s arm are grounding. Keith is still burning, but he trusts the other two to look after him. He allows himself a sliver of hope. A moment he would scoff at normally. He pretends that with Shiro and Lance here, nothing bad can reach him again. That they’ll protect him. It helps him fall into an exhausted sleep that night.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The next morning finds the boys snuggled under the ruined sheets. Tired, messy, but saited. A thrum of energy runs through the three of them. One of connection and completion.

Bonded, or so they thought.

Little did they know, the three had bonded even before the pills were involved.

Shiro was the first to wake. Under one arm was Keith, with Lance on his other side, sandwiching Keith between the two of them. Shiro can’t help help the emmesse feelings of fondness wash over him, and the he can watch the emotions bleed to the others.

Lance sighs and scrunches up his face adorably before giving a big stretch and gracing Shiro with sleepy smile. Shiro’s woken up next to him everyday of the last four weeks, and every morning gets his heart racing with happiness.

After a moment, Lance snuggles in closer to Keith and begins playing with his soft hair. Previously, Lance’s feelings felt like little tickles at the back of his head, but now it’s like all the floodgates are down. Peace wraps Shiro up like a blanket, and he gives Lance a smile.

Eventually, Shiro can’t help but join in on the doting, and lightly traces patterns on Keith’s arm, sneaking in a quick kiss now and then. This is their first time sleeping with Keith. Well, their first time sleeping with him bonded. It makes all the difference. Shiro feels like his world is right here with in. The place he always wants to return to. His home is permanently with these two. He would go wherever they went.

Unsurprisingly, Shiro and Lance wake Keith up with their emotions spilling everywhere like novices. It’s something they’ll have to work on one day, and Shiro is looking forward to it. He catches Lance’s gaze, and the two prepare themselves for Keith’s reaction.

First they feel his sleepy contentedness. Then his confusion. Panic follows quick, and Shiro sits up just and Keith is ripping the covers off himself.

“Keith!”

Keith freezes. Shiro and Lance send their love, support, warmth. It seems to work. The tension in his shoulders relaxes, and he allows himself to fall back into the sheets.

“Sorry,” he tries, voice hoarse.

“It’s okay,” Lance says.

“We got you,” says Shiro.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

It was hard to leave the warm bed in the morning, but they all knew the Facility personnel would be around shortly to chaperone the family visits. They lingered as long as possible.

Tension was heavy in the air as the boys quietly removed themselves from the bed and two of them dressed in their civvies in anticipation of their jaunt outside Facility walls.

Keith only had his Facility garb, and he hugged the large shirt to his slim body as he watched the other boys get ready. Not a word was spoken in the quiet room. They did not talk about last night, or the pills, or the bond. They just...were. All three just wanted to exist in the moment. Talking about it would shatter the illusion. It didn’t feel right to address any of it once they left the bed. Their haven.

They all knew this might be the last time they saw Keith.

Instead, they try to finalize their plan.

Lance speaks up first.

“Can he just hide in the closet? Is that good enough?” It speaks to how seriously Lance is taking this that he doesn’t crack a joke about it.

Shiro gives him an unimpressed look. “What if they come to clean?”

Frowning, Lance holds his chin in a thoughtful gesture. “Should we sneak him out into another part of the Facility?

Shiro shakes his head. “Once he leaves this room he’s locked out.”

Keith comes out of the bathroom and leans against the wall. He mumbles something they others can’t catch.

It’s Shiro who turns to him. “What was that?”

“I said, ‘just leave me here.’ I’ll stay in the kitchen.”

Keith gets confused looks from Lance and Shiro, so he waves an arm to clarify.

“They’ll probably just change the sheets and clean bathroom and kitchen. So if I hide in a cupboard I’ll be fine.”

That causes Lance to make a face and Shiro sit up in concern.

“You want to hide… in the cupboard?”

That gets Keith’s hackles up. “Hey, you got a better idea?”

Lance comes to stand in front of Keith, his face determined. “We can try to run away. Then find a way back in to get you.”

With a shake of his head, Keith dismisses the idea. “I’ll be a sitting duck here. Just play by the rules until we can get the upper hand.”

Lance moved in quick to give Keith a tight hug, and Keith tensed instinctively his arms, a gasp escaping his mouth. Well, he was back to his touch-avoidant self. Lance pulled back as if burned. Keith tried to backpedal, to mend the situation.

“Sor-”

“Don’t worry about it. I can tell you didn’t mean it. Actually, I can read both of you crazy strong now.”

Lance lets that sentence ring in the quiet.

The wristband on Shiro’s arm pings, and breaks the mood. It’s almost time.

Shiro and Keith both avoid making eye contact with him, and Lance worries for a second that the two boys regret last night. A spike of fear rushes through him, despite his efforts to suppress it. Shiro gathers him up immediately, and Keith gives him a concerned look.

The knock on the door is loud, and echoes, the moment broken. It was time to go. As Lance and Shiro head for the door, Keith darts out a hand and grabs Shiro’s.

“Wait!”

Shiro turns and gives him a gentle, knowing look, even as Lance hisses in panic.

“Keith! They could come in at any time! They’ll see you!”

Keith just stays holding Shiro’s hand, looking deep into his eyes, his expression saying words that he couldn’t voice out loud.

“It’s okay Keith. Two days. We’ll be back before you know it. Remember what we talked about. Our plan.”

He gets a nod in reply, and Shiro gives him a small smile before pulling him in for a hug. Keith only allows it for a moment, before he pulls back and reached his arms up to cup Shiro’s face and give him a quick kiss on the lips.

When he steps back, Shiro is blushing and giving him a bashful look. There is a beat, before Lance awkwardly steps up to Keith, his eyes questioning. When Keith makes no move either away or towards him, Lance comes in closer, a hand reaching out towards Keith’s face, telegraphing his movements. Right when his fingers are about to touch Keith’s face, the boy closes his eyes and leans into Lance’s hand, giving a sigh of contentedness at the sensation. Lance gives him a fond look, before bringing up his other hand and giving Keith a sweet kiss of his own.

This time, when he pulls away, both him and Keith have blushes on their faces. The three shared a moment, before the knock sounds again, and Keith slinks back to the bedroom.

Lance sighs in anticipation, but before he can give himself a shake and put on a fake smile, Shiro is already there, cool metal hand in his, squeezing in solidarity.

Lance gives him a thankful smile, and opens the door.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Pidge had just finished her work for Dr. Haggar and was about to begin her own analysis of data when her office phone rings. The assistant has a hunch she already knows what the call will be about.

“Ma’am, it’s David from Bonds again. Pair 1046 has been approved to leave the premises. They will return in 48 hours.”

“Thank you. Call me the moment they arrive. Dr. Haggar is tracking their progress closely.”

“You got it.”

Pidge hangs up with a smile, things playing out just as she had hoped. Her work will be complete within the allotted time frame, and she will be ready to collect Subject 73 and help him escape. It’s all going to plan, and soon she and the boy Keith will be free of this place.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The man hangs up the phone, and turns to the small, but imposing figure next to him with a gulp.

“Well done, ‘David from Bonds,’ " she says mockingly. “This will buy me some time. She’ll be behind. The pair are already well on their way. Keep with the script, and your family will be unharmed.”

“Y-yes. Ma’am.”

The woman raises her eyebrow and gives him a pointed look.

“Er, Doctor. Yes, Doctor Haggar.”

The doctor smiles cruelly, gives the man a pat on the shoulder, and leaves the room.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Needless to say, by the time they finally arrive, Lance is a nervous wreck. The Facility car had just dropped them off in front of the Shiroganes’. He is uncontrollably shaky; warm and clammy to the touch despite his complaints of being cold.

“It's okay Lance,” Shiro says, hands warm on his shoulders. “It's been awhile since you've been outside so it’ll be a little overwhelming. But you're doing great and I got you.” Shiro gives him a kind smile, and mentally sends out feeling of calm and comfort. They are standing on the patio of Shiro’s parent’s house. Lance would just have to reach out his hand to touch the solid wood door. The idea sends another shock of anxiety through him. Shiro rubs his back, chasing the shivers away.

“My parents and my brother are pretty chill, you'll be fine. It's just going to be a quick hello, stay for lunch, visit your parents for dinner, get a good night’s sleep with your family. Then back to Keith by tomorrow’s lunch. Sound good?”

Lance nods, thankful.

Shiro steps forward and knocks on the door three times. He returns to Lance’s side and grabs his hand.

“It's going to be alright, Lance,” Shiro said gently.  “I know you’re worried about how to interact with regular people, but my parents are nice folk. they'll treat you fine.” A squeeze of his hand in Lance’s.

“And honestly, it really doesn't matter what they think because, I love you and there's nothing they can do that will get it between us. But I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.”

Lance shivers but this time it was more than just the cold. He honestly didn't know what he had done to deserve such a gentle soul. Lance tries to fight his panic. He wasn't sure why exactly he was so anxious but there is something about doing such a normal thing like visiting family after all the years he had been suffering or locked up.

Lance tries to pick through his thoughts and put labels on his emotions. Fear was there, strongest. Fear of the unknown. Fear of disappointing Shiro. Fear of his parent’s judgement. Fear that he wouldn't know how to react in a completely new situation, one that wasn't covered in the trainings at all. And it was from something as simple as greeting strangers.

They can hear footsteps approaching the door from inside the house. Lance takes the time to study the wood grain of the door the dark color of the wood the knocker in the shape of dragon. But besides a small vase of bamboo on the patio, the house is otherwise plain and bare of decoration.

The door opens and Lance's heart jumps in his chest. A woman, middle-aged with streaks of grey on the sides of her head. Her hair was pulled up into a bun on the top of her head. She was about average height a little shorter than Lance. Her eyes lands for a second, blank in unrecognition, and she began to frown, before they jump to Shiro and a smile breaks out across her face.

“My darling!” She shouts it with happiness and tugs Shiro into a huge hug.

Her voice is suspiciously shaky. “Has it really been a year?” Shiro pulls her tight and buries his head in her neck. Lance could tell his composure was starting to crack.

“Hey mom. I missed you so much. Is anyone else home?”

“Your brother is home on leave, knowing this is your usual visitation time. And your dad just went to the store, but he'll be back shortly.”

She stepped back, but the two remain holding hands. Mother and son. She gives his a squeeze and then turns her attention to Lance.

Anxiety rips through Lance. He tries to put a smile on his face, but he wasn't sure how well he was succeeding. From Shiro's soft look and his mother’s knowing one, it appears that they can both see right through him.

“So dear, who is this young man?” Shiro steps back and puts his arm around Lance.

“Mom I'd like you to meet Lance. He's my Sentinel.” He says it with such pride Lance can’t help but blush.

At this, Shiro's mom took a step back in shock. An unreadable expression falls upon her face, and a had goes to her chest. She stutters. “B-but they told me… I thought they said…”

“I know Mom. Let's talk inside. We have a lot to discuss.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

By the time Shiro’s father has returned from the store, the family is gathered around the dinner table. They turn and give him warm welcomes, but Shiro taps a pile of papers in the center with a pin. Mr. Shirogane pulls up a chain and sits, reading the note.

 

_This is Lance, my Sentinel._

_We might be bugged._

_We need your help escaping the Facility._

 

“Welcome home, dear,” Mrs. Shirogane says brightly. “Your son was just telling us about all he’s up to at the Facility!”

Shiro continues the friendly chat about what it was like at the facility. His workout routine, the food he ate, the training simulations. But while he was talking he was writing down about Keith, Lance’s abuse, and their plans for escape.

At the end of the story, Mr. Shirogane frowned. He was a still a lawyer, taking up small cases in support of minorities, and some pro bono work, much to his wife’s chagrin. Now that he had all this information, he wanted to get started immediately, but Shiro had told him not yet.

 

_Give us a few months, then go to court._

_Give us time to get out first._

_We won’t be able to come here,_

_but we’ll find a way to send messages._

 

Shiro’s father pulls out a pen and writes back. They toss legal jargon back and forth, and Lance zones out a bit. Shiro’s brother Rin gives Lance a wry smile, and pats him on the shoulder and he gets up and leaves the table. Lance lets his thoughts wander, and the unconsciously stray back to Keith. He wonders how he’s doing. They hadn’t wanted to leave him behind, but they had little choice. Lance was extremely worried about him. Was he alright? Would be be discovered?

Lance feels a warm tail curl around his feet, and he reaches down to pet the warm creature. He gets a purr in response. Must be the cat Shiro mentioned having. The soft fur calms him a bit, and he focuses back on the conversation.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

After lunch, Lance begged for a few moments away to catch his breath. Shiro excused them both to go for a short walk around the neighborhood. Shiro knew the Facility was closely tracking their progress. If they got too far away from his house, personnel would be called. He had never cared much about it before, but now he was painfully aware of how short a leash they were on. It was stifling. As they left the house, Lance grabbed Shiro’s arms and entwined their fingers.

“I wanted to come outside for my own sanity, but it seems like you need it more than me right now. I don’t even need to be able to read your emotions, I can see the tension in your body plain as day.”

Shiro gave an apologetic look. “Sorry.”

Lance took a deep breath, held it for a beat, and let it out slowly. “You got nice people.”

Shiro half turned to give Lance a raised eyebrow. Lance stuck his tongue out in reply. They walk on for a few minutes in silence, before Lance spoke up.

“By the way, I met your cat. What was her name?

“My cat?”

“Yeah, I think you said you had one named Kawa. Man, she can sure purr.”

Shiro freezes in place. “What the fuck?”

The uncharacteristic curse shocks Lance, and he turned around in surprise.

“What’s wrong?”

The look Shiro gives him is chilling. Lance feels ice wanting to crawl through his veins.

“I had a dog, but she died last year.”

Wait a second.

Lance gulps. “Then what…” he trailed off.

Shiro walks up to Lance and braces his hands on Lance’s shoulders.

“Babe, this isn’t the first time you’ve mentioned a cat in the last 24 hours. Are you okay? I thought the effects of the pill had worn off?”

“Uhhh, it’s probably nothing, Shiro. Don’t worry about it, love.”

Lance goes to walk away, but Shiro’s hand darts out and grabs his arm, pulling him into his chest.

“Please, baby. We’re bonded now. Mates. Please talk to me.”

Lance sighs. “You’ll think I’m crazy.”

Shiro gives him a soft look. “I’m the one who’s crazy. Crazy in love with you.”

That makes Lance laugh, and he caves.

“I’m still 90% sure I’m hallucinating. But there’s a big, white, cat thing I keep seeing. It’s bigger than a house cat, has a long tail, very fluffy.”

To his credit, Shiro doesn’t give Lance a strange look.

“When?”

“Around you.”

“Me?”

“Yup.”

A beat, then-

“Is it…. doing anything?”

“Uh, cat stuff?”

Here, Shiro gives him an unimpressed look. “Lance.”

“I’m serious! Licking, kneading, purring.”

“And you saw it for the first time after the pills?”

“Er, not exactly.”

“What?!” Shiro’s voice is getting shrill, and Lance can feel his unhappiness clear as day.

Lance tries to do some damage control. “After the games!”

Here, Shiro sounds concerned. “Wait, seriously?”

Lance cuts to the chase, tugging on Shiro’s arms to get them moving back towards the house again.

“What do you think it means? There was nothing in the books.”

There’s a hum, and Shiro takes a deep breath.

“So it means either A, the facility doesn’t want us to to know about it, or B, the facility itself doesn’t even know. But if the cat isn’t doing anything malicious, maybe it’s okay?”

“I want to say it’s from the bonding, but it showed up before then.”

“Hmm. What about Keith?”

Lance playfully shoves Shiro. “He’s cute, I like him a lot.”

Shiro chuckes. “No Lance. I mean, do you see the cat around him, too?”

“Oh!” Lance blushes. “Uh no, there’s a dog.”

Shiro stops again. This time right in front of his house. “A dog?!”

“Or a fox?”

Exasperated. “A fox?!”

“Hmm, maybe a wolf?”

Shiro is distressed now. “Lance, babe, please. Which is it?”

Frustrated, Lance throws his arms out. "I dunno! It’s giant wolf-shaped, but fox-colored canine? It’s definitely not anything I recognize, but I’m not great with identifying wild animals.”

“Ok well, tell me when you see it again.”

Calmed, Lance jokes. “Not if?”

Shiro takes him arm and leads him up the front steps like a prince escorting a princess. “I have a feeling there’s here for a reason.” He even bows while holding the door open, and Lance laughs at him fondly.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

They say their goodbyes to Shiro’s family and call the Facility transport to take them to Lance’s family. The house is on the other side of town, so it takes nearly an hour to get there.

They haven’t even rounded the corner when Lance hears them.

“Lance! There he is!”

“Smalls!”

“My son! That’s my son!”

“Baby! My sweet baby! He’s here!”

“Is that my older brother?!”

Lance almost wonders how he could have forgotten this, but then he remembers that eight years was a long time. He still can’t believe the cruelty of the Facility, denying him this. But, as Shiro coached him on the way over, today was about healing, not regrets. He had time enough of that. Time to focus on the future.

Lance can’t stop the tears rolling down his face. He doesn’t even bother. It seems like he didn’t even have to worry about his family not loving him any more. Those were merely lies put into his head by Sendak and Haggar. Relief floods through him, and he feel boneless.

Shiro squeezes his hand, offering love and support through the mental link. To Lance, it feels like one of Shiro’s warmest, biggest hugs and just speaks of safety and security. Honestly, Shiro is the very best and he will make sure to remind him of that every day. Shiro blushes in response, privy to all of Lance’s thoughts.

The Facility car stops, and Lance scrambles over Shiro to get out.

He makes it one step before getting smothered in arms. He gets a whiff of his mother’s perfume, and sobs. Memories come crashing back. Familiar sounds, smells, quirks. His father’s rumbling voice, his sister’s soft hair, his brother’s laugh.

“LANCE!”

And over his mother’s shoulder he sees his best friend. Hunk. Running over with tears falling freely down his face.

Hunk throws himself into the hug pile and they all tumble to the floor in various states of happy, crying, and relief. His mom won’t stop kissing his face. And he doesn’t want her to.

“See Lance? Nothing to worry about.”

Overwhelmed, Lance looks up at Shiro’s big grin, and gives a watery one back.

He’s finally home.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Two heads bow over the radio, listening intently, while another is glued to the screen of a small computer. The equipment is a little worse for wear, and certainly not state-of-the-art, but for pilfered goods, they do the job.

“Commander! Sir! We got the signal!”

At the shout of the communications leader, the room falls into hushed tones. All eyes turn to look at the commander and he puts down the documents in his hand.

He’s across the large warehouse. It’s not a dump per se, with every corner filled with rations, various pieces of equipment, older technology, and busy people. But it’s not eye-catching or state-of-the-art. And the inhabitants would rather prefer it that way. It is, however, the largest headquarters of the Anti-HyperSens group in Altea.

The newly-promoted Commander Lotor stands up from the desk and he turns to the communications team. Everyone in the room holds their breath, frozen in place.

“Then it’s time to finally put our plan into action. Everyone to your places and MOVE OUT!”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance feels like he’s floating. He’s still running high on emotions from his reunion with his family. Everything went like a dream. They love him, they missed him, they wish him the best. They are flourishing even without him. And really, because of him. His family was given a generous stipend to make up for the Facility taking Lance so young. His father got enough money to fix up the house and expand it. His mother was able set up an art gallery and has been successful selling her work. The grandparents now get to live in the same house, and get great medical care. His older brother got a full ride to Altea University, and just finished his PhD. He now has a beautiful fiancé, and the two are planning to get married soon. His twin sister just got accepted into an advanced marine science program. His younger brother, who had a medical condition when he was born, got the very best care, and is now an extremely bright, healthy boy of eight. And there’s now a baby sister, just four years old.

Lance is s happy that his family has been taken care of. For all the shit they did to Lance, it looks like on the outside, the Facility is doing people right. If only they knew about the rotten core. Lance has a tiny doubt, however. A kernel of concern. If something were to happen to Lance, say an escape, what would happen to his family?

Lance banishes these thoughts, and turns to his friend. His very best friend. It seemed like time hadn’t come between them. They could pick up right where they left off eight years ago.

“Hey Hunk. My man. So what’ve you been up to all these years?”

Hunk fiddles with his phone, then rests it on the table. He looks up at Lance with a warm smile.

“Well, I found some like-minded people. They build stuff from scratch, improve upon other stuff, rescue animals, steal from the rich to give to the poor. You know, regular Robin Hoods.”

It’s just been long enough that Lance has doubts, but he’s he sees the tight line by Hunk’s mouth that used to be one of Hunk’s tells. He’s withholding something.

Lance thinks it’s fair, and tries not to feel bitter about it. Hunk has new passions that he doesn’t want to share with Lance yet. That’s fine. Lance is in the same boat. He decides to spill the beans about Shiro. Maybe that will warm Hunk up.

“That’s great Hunk. Um, do you wanna know the truth about Shiro?”

That catches Hunk’s attention. Lance hadn’t wanted spook his family once he saw the perfect world they had. They had gotten the notification that he was Unmatchable, and that resulted in even more money going to Lance’s family. Compensation for his bleak-looking future. So his relationship to Shiro had gotten played down.

“The truth? Lance, what are you talking about? You said he was your friend. Is that not…?”

Lance reaches over and grabs Hunk’s hands. He smiles at his best friend.

“He’s my match. My Guide.”

Blood seems to drain from Hunk’s face, and Lance tries to pull his hands back, alarmed, but Hunk leans forward and grips Lance’s hands tight.

“Are you safe, Lance? Is Shiro the reason you haven’t visited?”

“Huh?”

“I looked up the rules, Lance. After your missed the first visit at age ten. You were supposed to get to visit each year. It’s the LAW, Lance!”

Lance’s thoughts are spinning. He tries to get something together but just gapes open mouthed at Hunk.

“I didn’t tell your family what I found, but I’ve been working hard to free you, Lance.”

“No, it’s not, he’s-”

“Tonight. You can escape. There’s a safe place for you. I’ll take you. We help people like you be free. There’s a thing tonight. We’re busting someone out. You can come, too!”

Lance stands up abruptly, yanking his hands from Hunk.

“No! You’re wrong! Shiro is amazing!”

Hunk gives Lance a pitying look.

“I know they’re tried to brainwash you. I’ve seen how the Facility really runs.” Hunk stands and wraps Lance up in his arms. Lance is still too stunned to resist. “It’s okay Lance. I’ll protect you.”

Lance tries to weakly push Hunk off him. He needs to fix this! He needs to correct Hunk and let him know Shiro is real and amazing. But Lance’s thoughts spin. If Hunk knows about the Facility. He could be their outside ally. He could be their ticket out. He could help save Keith! He grabs Hunk’s shoulders and shakes him in excitement.

“Hunk! You genius! It’s not me and Shiro that need saving, but we have a f-friend. Keith! He’s the one that truly needs out, Hunk!” Lance can’t help the stutter. He figures telling Hunk about Shiro is enough for today. Telling him that he also bonded with an artificial HyperSens named Keith and that the three are in some sort of poly relationship might just break his mind.

Hunk’s eyes widen, and two things happen simultaneously.

First, Lance’s seemingly deactivated wristband flashes red in warning, emitting a piercing alarm.

And second, Hunk’s phone rings, loud and shrill.

Lance immediately turns to find Shiro in a panic, running out of the room calling for him.

He misses Hunk’s dive for the phone and quick exit from the house.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

They had finally gotten to sleep after the disconcerting episode with Lance’s wristband. It turned out Shiro’s had not reacted, just Lance’s.

An agonized roar shatters the peaceful night, and Lance jerks awake.

“Woah!”

Shiro sits up, alarmed, but before he can speak, a deep growl rumbles right on the heels of the first call. It’s deep and low and heavy; a clear warning.

“Is that-”

A long, anguished howl rings out. Full of pain and regret. Mournful.

Lance reaches out for Shiro. “That can’t be good,” he says, as the other pulls him in tight. Shiro rests his chin on Lance’s head, taking comfort in the fact that Lance is safe and secure in his arms. He wishes he had Keith here, too. He closes his eyes and sighs.

“Uh, Shiro, don’t freak out. But you might wanna turn around. Slowly.”

Lance can feel Shiro seize up in, tension tight in his arms. But he doesn’t look away from the sight at the door. Shiro adjusts slowly to look where Lance is staring, eyes wide. The door is still closed, just as they left it. But now they aren’t alone.

“Don’t tell me those are…” He cuts off, speechless.

“Yup. That’s them. Well, the white one was from before. The, uh, tiger is a new addition.

There, at the door, is a snow leopard. It is pacing angrily, long tail whipping back and forth in agitation. Growling relentlessly next to it is a massive tiger, lips peeled back and revealing sharp teeth.

Lance gets up shakily, ignoring Shiro’s plea, and slowly approaches the cats.

“Um, hi guys?”

He reaches out a hand towards the white cat, but it avoids Lance’s fingers, darts around him, and jumps at Shiro, who gives a surprised cry and falls off the bed.

“Shiro!” Lance turns to aid Shiro, but he makes it maybe one step before he’s tackled to the ground. The air is jarred from Lance’s lungs, and he sprawls on the floor wheezing.

“Lance?” A muffed call. “You alright?”

“I think so. I’m just getting...licked?”

He rolls over the best he can while getting pinned by a giant cat. It’s earlier ferocious display replaced by a purr that is nearly a roar, and a massive tongue grooming his hair. “Yuck.”

Steps catch Lance’s attention, and he lifts his head to see Shiro standing there, arms crossed, eyeing him. The leopard on his shoulder is giving Lance a matching look.

“Huh. Well, this is new. They never did this before.”

“I wonder why they’re here.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The door slams open with a bang. Keith jerks in shock, then forces his body to freeze, and closes his mind off from his bondmates. He needs to keep them safe at all costs. It’s late in the evening, but still expected.

He picked a good location. He had hoped it would be enough to trick the regular Facility personnel, but anyone breaking open doors like that is not a typical maintenance person.

Keith closes his eyes and wills his breathing to calm. It’s okay. He prepared for this. He knew it was just willful thinking that he would actually make it out of free. He won’t go without a fight, though. He actually won’t go back at all. He hadn’t told the other boys, but the thinks Shiro might have guessed he would choose this. He wasn’t joking when he said he would rather die than go back. Keith curls his hands into fists.

With the sound of each step getting closer, his hope dies a little bit more. All too soon, the steps stop right outside his hiding spot.

Then light floods his vision as the cupboard door swings open. Keith throws a hand up to block the light, but still manages to give the man smirking down at him a death glare. He’s dressed in some sort of official uniform, but Keith doesn’t recognize it as a standard Facility one. The man reaches for the walkie talkie on his shoulder harness and clicks it on, and that’s when Keith notices that he’s armed.

“He’s here, as promised. Please tell RockDove I send my regards. The Director will be thrilled.”

Eyes adjusted, Keith brings his arms into a defensive stance close to his face, fists clenched and ready.

“Ah ah. None of that now. You’re going to come peacefully.”

Quick as lightning, the man shoots an arm out and grabs Keith, turning him around and trapping him in a sleeper hold. Keith is out within seconds.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the Guardian Spirits are now on the stage!
> 
>   
>    
> 
> 
> Commissions by the marvelous [HYPHERRR](http://hypherrr.tumblr.com/)!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Instead, you can like it [HERE!](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/172403513081/guardian-spirits-keith-foxwolf-hybrid-shiro)  
> Come talk to me on [ tumblr](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/)  
> I post G&G updates and even write prompt fills when people send em. (Only 3 ppl ever do so yeah, please)  
> Ask me questions, nag me, throw ideas at me. I only have a rough idea of where things are going, so if there's anything you're dying to see, let me know!
> 
>  
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some rise up, others fall.
> 
> Shiro and Lance cut a deal that will change the game.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We meet Allura, and Hunk is a badass. Plot's rolling and I feel like Indiana Jones xD  
> Thank you for your patience. I'm trying to update every month.
> 
> Bless PunkInPinkGlitter and FullmetalReborn/Omggiogiothings for their support!! <3  
> AND HUUUUUGE THANK YOU TO EUNIOA FOR HELPING ME PLAN OUT THE PLOT FOR THE LAST HALF OF MY STORY. Without them it would be a very flat, bland story. X333
> 
> Punk is the BEST Beta, she's the reason this came out time.  
> Gio I love ya to death. Happy Birthday!  
> Couldn't have done it with you loves! <3
> 
> Please see notes at the bottom for a gorgeous picture and my tumblr page. I love to gush about G&G, and your insights and questions inspire me to write new content I wasn't planning on! :3
> 
> Thank you everyone for your patience and for reading! <333 I put a LOT of work into this one, so I hope you love it as much as I do!

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The assistant lifts her badge to swipe the keyboard and lets herself in, but she can’t. The panel is smashed. With a growing sense of dread, Pidge nudges open the busted door. It’s cracked, and splinters are scattered across the floor. She gingerly steps into the room. The room is dark, lit only by the light spilling into the room from the open doorway. She sees the small trail of blood on the floor. This is not good.

“Keith?”

Silence greets her.

The overhead lights don’t work when she tries to flip them on, so she opens the door wider. The place is trashed. All the closets, cabinets, cupboards, drawers, and doors are ripped off hinges and their contents are strewn all over the ground. If anyone was hiding here, they’ve recently been gone. The majority of the damage is in the kitchen. There’s clear evidence of a scuffle, and the blood seems to have originated here.

“Shit,” she says passionately.

It’s not only the fact that Keith is gone, it’s the fact that they have a huge, big, fat security breach.

“Shit!” She hisses again, and yanks her walkie-talkie off her hip.

“Lockdown the facility! We have a security breach!”

Pidge then runs to the technical ward to work some magic on the nearest computer. It’s times like this she is super grateful that she convinced her brother to teacher her his computer skills. But she doesn’t let herself get distracted. She needs to focus on finding this kid before he starts suffering from hormone withdrawal.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

“Director, we have collected and secured the asset for relocation. It will be on its way shortly.”

“Excellent. See to it that it receives a warm welcome.”

“Yes, Director.”

The secretary bows and leaves the room. She returns to her desk and dials a number. Her instructions are short and direct. This is nothing new. Everything is routine. The asset will be in a private experimental chamber. It will be given the routine tests like all new collections, and after the data has been analyzed, experimentation will begin. With this new addition, work should progress much further. If it already has the capacity to create both genes, it might just be a matter of harvesting useful pieces like blood and DNA and growing the rest in test tubes. No need for a living specimen if results can be duplicated. As always, she is impressed by the Director’s foresight. Everything seems to be working his way.

Back in his office, Zarkon smiles to himself. The blow to the Altean Facility will be a great one. The invasion. The security breach. They will feel vulnerable and hopeless. Even if the asset turns out to be useless, the break in will still have done its part. He was dubious about the insertion of the mole Sendak into the Altean Facility, but once he had the support of the RockDove, things went swimmingly from there.

The Director turns his attention to the new task. The tribond. If such a feat were possible, it would be worth investigating. The mental powers of three would vastly exceed a measly two. They could work harder on more challenging tasks. Sure, being able to have one soldier carry the weight of two would be preferable, but having a wildcard like a tribond in the wings would keep enemies on their toes. They would never expect such a thing. Especially if they are targeting the solo one, not knowing the powers were really coming from the tri.

The next step would be hooking them up to a computer, then, so that machine would replace the need for the two others. He just needs those with the mental capacity. Hooking the solo up to two computers, replicating the power of three. Now THAT could be a game changer.

Zarkon plans.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

“Hey Hunk, you ready?”

“Yup. I got the device. Is this the guy I’m replacing?”

At the warehouse a guy is tied up. He’s big, but even with his expression lax in unconsciousness, Hunk can tell he's got a mean face. Cruelty is hard to hide. Hunk forces his unease down. He's doing this for Lance. So he can get his friend back. He's new to this, he knows, but Lotor told him he's already irreplaceable.

“Yea, that's him. We already got your cover and everything. We’re dropping you off at the exchange zone in five.”

“Got it.”

“What about the other piece? The wristband? Our in?”

“Taken care of. Remotely downloaded my OS on it and seamlessly integrated with their system. It's clean. I can access it from my phone, and I already sent the credentials to our communications computers. We’re all set.”

“Perfect. Hop in the van and we’ll take you to the transport exchange where they are picking up the HyperSens right now.”

“Got it. I’ll do my best.”

“You’ll be fine. The RockDove and I will be watching you. Be safe!”

  


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance stands at the edge of the bed, hands on his hips. “Alright. So these are the animals,” he announces, gesturing at the animals by the door. Shiro, to his credit, doesn’t react much. But he does cross his arms, thoughtful. “I wonder why couldn't I see them before?”

“I dunno,” Lance says with a shrug. “I don't think anyone else can see them. Or hear them,” he added with an afterthought.

“So what are we going to do about it?” Shiro asks, logically.

It still has Lance confused. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, do they need care? Are they related to the bond? We don’t know anything about them except only we can see them.” Shiro’s brow pinches, concerned. “We need more information.”  
  
“Are you worried about them? Like, having them around?”

“No, they don’t seem dangerous or anything, but I still need more information. Especially if this is going to be a regular thing.”

Lance crouches down next to his tiger and pets its head.

“Hey buddy, you got any special powers?”

The snow leopard turns to give him an unimpressed look, but the tiger gives a strange chuff before lifting a paw to knock Lance over. As he looks up at the tiger from the floor, a betrayed look on his face, it promptly steps over him and smothers him with its bulk.

“Fff! Hey! Get off!”

Shiro, the traitor, is snickering at him under his breath, and the snow leopard is grooming itself, but Lance swears he can see a smug look on its face.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

A little later, after Shiro helps him up from the floor, they collapse into laughter on the bed. Lance heaves a big sigh of contentedness, and Shiro rolls over to face him, a smile on his face as he wraps his arms around the pillow and tucks his head.

Lance is wearing a hoodie his sister had bought him. It's such a change from the facility wear. He wonders if he’ll get to bring it back with him. It’s soft and smells like his sister. Since they were twins, he totally knows she's been wearing it. She said she bought it as soon as she heard he was coming to visit. It fits perfectly.

As soon as she had seen Shiro’s sheer bulk, she had immediately run out to get him his own. Shiro was speechless, and if there were tears running down his face, everyone was kind enough not to mention it.

Shiro gives him a warm look. “How you feeling?”

On his back, Lance lifts a hand to track the glow stickers on the ceiling. This room used to be his, and, unwilling to redecorate it, his parents had turned it into the guest room. He gives a little smile.

“I feel really good. Like a huge burden has been lifted from my shoulders. I saw my family, met yours, reconnected with Hunk, and finally got outside.”

A cool hand links fingers with his outstretched one; Shiro’s metal arm. His Guide lowers Lance’s hand and kisses it, before hugging it to his chest. Lance goes with the pull, curling up to Shiro’s chest.

“I’m glad, Lance. So happy you finally got this.”

“All thanks to you.”

Lance can hear Shiro’s steady heart beat. He tries to image them syncing up, but Shiro’s heart beats at a different rhythm than his own. Idly, he wonders if Keith’s is more slow and steady like Shiro’s, or faster like his. Does it pound powerfully, or dance faster or slower in response to his emotions?

Lance is looking forward to finding out.

“Don’t worry. Keith is fine. Just imagine us free of this all one day. Cuddled up together just like this.”

Relaxed, Lance closes his eyes and lets himself slip into Shiro’s world. Lance still feels most at home near the ocean, but Shiro’s world is quickly become one of his most favorite places.

It’s a little different this time. The air is cool, and the sky is full of clouds and heavy with rain. Everything has a grey tint to it, making the green of the trees vibrant. Lance can smell the earthiness in the air, and a combination of the moist soil and dripping leaves tells a story of a recent rain. Any second and it will pick up again. Unlike before, Lance can navigate this mindscape. He strolls, unhurried, to a nearby tree; huge brown trunk giving away its age. Untold mysteries are contained in it’s unseen roots. Lance places a hand on the rough bark. A soft step comes from behind him, and Lance smiles before looking over his shoulder.

_I can feel it all, Shiro. The smells, the taste of the breeze, the chill in the air. It’s like I’m really here._

_I know. I can feel you, too. I can feel your warmth._

Shiro pulls up behind Lance and traps him in his arms. Lance leans back, accepting him, and his Guide nuzzles his beck before planting soft kisses in a trail down from his ear. Lance sighs in happiness, lost in the feeling.

Shiro guides Lance out of the scene, and in a blink Lance is sprawled on the bed, Shiro above him kissing him passionately. He smiles and opens his mouth, letting Shiro sweep in and steal his breath away. After a few wonderful minutes, Lance pulls back. Shiro makes a small noise of complaint, but Lance hushes him with a peck to the cheek.

“Wait, wait. I wanna try something.”

Lance closes his eyes, and nudges their minds slightly. When he opens them, he’s back in the forest, still lying down with Shiro above him. They are on a soft bed of leaves, dry under a thick overhang of leafy branches. Lance reaches his hand out and picks up a fallen leaf. He studies it in the soft light.

_This is unreal, Shiro. This is far beyond anything we could do before. I wonder what other things we could use this ability for?_

Shiro adjusts on top of him, interrupting his thoughts and thoroughly distracting him with more kisses.

_Let’s just let this be for us, Lance. Our space._

Lance drops the leaf and lets it fall to the ground, choosing instead to wrap his arms around Shiro.

The kisses are just getting this side of a little too heated when the angry animalistic growls return. They rise in volume, and Lance and Shiro look at one another in shock. Shiro is about to speak, when they hear the footsteps appear.

Shiro is the first to look up, and pulls up off of Lance in shock.

_Keith?!_

Startled, Lance raises himself up on his elbows. Standing there was Keith. Actually, saying he was standing would be putting it nicely. Keith was a wreck. He was hunched over, bracing himself on the tree trunk to stop his swaying. His shirt was ripped and torn, bruises covering his arms and a nasty-looking one across his neck. He’s sweating, panting with exhaustion.

_Are you okay?! What happened?_

Instead of answering, Keith sways, and Shiro jumps up to grab him, gently lowering him down to the ground. Shiro pulls his bangs back and cups his face, looking at him intently.

Lance makes to get up, but trips. He tries again, and the world tilts. Lance crashes to the ground. Puddles appear from where his hands are gripping the leaves tightly, and a piercing ringing echoes in his ears.

He’s so focused on trying to get himself under control that he misses the leaves bursting into flames around Keith, hissing and snapping in reaction to the wetness.

Lance closes his eyes and lets himself fall.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

When he comes to it’s dark. And cold.

Keith knew he wouldn’t be able to block his mind from the other for long, but it looks like he held out long enough for Lance to get to visit his family. Shiro had quietly pulled him aside one night and caught him up on all of the atrocities the Facility had committed on Lance. The torture, the isolation, the hiding away. Keith was inspired by Shiro’s passion to do right by them. He wondered if Lance had any idea how much Shiro loved him. Lance was completely, wholly it in Shiro’s eyes. It was as if Lance had hung the moon. Like he had been the first real light in Shiro’s life. Given Shiro’s past, Lance might just be.

The aches and pains register slowly. His arm hurts. His neck is sore from the intruder’s grip. He feels crusted blood on his face, and his head is pounding. The room is shaking and rumbling, so he’s probably being moved somewhere. Keith has a suspicion Haggar has something to do with it. His hands are secured behind himself. He might as well give up the fight now.

Initially, Keith could feel the danger and was aware of reaching out for help and comfort, unconsciously looking for the two familiar safe places he had now, the beach and the forest. He tracked their energy and sought out their presence, and found them there together, in the woods. Connected. Whole. Complete.

As soon as Keith was aware of what he was doing, he yanked himself out if it.

Keith doesn’t let himself feel better. They had shown him kindness. They had shown him pleasure and love. But he was the target. It was better this way. By completely removing himself from the equation, he’s keeping the others safe.

Hopefully they could move on from him.

Keith closes his eyes.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

“Shiro, hurry up! We need to go NOW!”

“Lance! I am doing my best. They aren’t- oh! Yes hello.”

“Takashi Shirogane, how may we assist?”

“We need a pick up now!”

“A driver will be there in the morning. Is there an emergency?”

“Yes!”

“Please describe.”

 _CRAP_ Shiro thinks. What can he say that will get them back to the facility, but not draw any undue extra attention they can’t get out of? Shit he should have taken a second to think first before calling

“We, uh. There’s a-”

Lance grabs the wristband.

“ANIMALS. THERE ARE ANIMALS HERE.”

“Lance, what-”

“Please call the local animal control-”

“No, you don't understand. Like, hallucination animals. That we can both see.”

“Have you taken any-”

“Its a fucking tiger! And it wont leave me alone! There's a snow cat on Shiro!”

“It's actually a snow leopard.”

“Shiro, hush! Please! We need help!”

The line seems to go dead, and then a new voice picks up, this one female.

“Hello, can you please explain the situation? Transport is on its way to you now.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Once the communication link closes, Allura puts the phone receiver down, and straightens up from her sprawl across the communications desk.

Once the filter had picked up the word “animal,” her private line had been called, and she had raced down to the communications branch as quickly as possible, yanking the phone from the confused personnel.

“Ahem, thank you. Let me know when the transport is five minutes away. I will be in my office.”

She leaves the room, her advisor Coran at her heels. Unlike Allura, Coran liked to mingle with the HyperSens, acting as an instructor and getting to know them personally. Little did they know he was one of the administrators of the whole Facility. Allura likes to keep to the shadows, working through others to keep things running. But for certain matters, Allura needs to be the first, and only one, to know.

As soon as Coran follows her into the office and closes the door behind them both, Allura turns on her heel.

“Animals, Coran!”

“Yes milady.”

“Coran, please.”

“I’m sorry. Ms. Allura.”

“Could they be spirit animals?”

“You mean guardian spirits?”

“Yes, of course. Guardian spirits.”

Coran humms. “The last time they were heard of was back when your father was in charge. And even then, it was only a rumor. The bonded pair admitted to having them, right before they passed peacefully.”

“I remember that. They were the strongest bond pair.”

“But it was never proved. They did have the highest mental connection we’ve ever seen, but there was no proof or evidence. Only their word.”

“Well, you know it's been my life's work to find a guardian spirit. This might be our chance. It if was McGregor/Williamson, or Hoffman/Newton, I’ve be dubious. But Shirogane/McClain? I’d believe that.”

“You sure that's wise?”

What have they got to lose? They’ve scraped the bottom of the barrel by both being Unmatchables. They’ve gotten a second chance here. They wouldn't be so quick to blow it. Not when it could all fall apart for them again.

Allura pauses.

“They seem..happy together”

“As they should. Bond pairs are for life.”

“Yes but, most of our bonds don't seem like it. Do you think we’re doing the wrong thing here?”

“Wrong? You’re saving these people's lives. You saw the report your father made. Before the Facility, life was dangerous for these HyperSens. They need our protection. You provide a safe place for them to develop their skills and help them get a job. We haven't seen a bond break or mental collapse here in 10 years.”

“Yes, thank you Coran. You're right. As always.”

“Hardly Ms. Allura.”

A ding chimes.

“That's the signal, Miss. They are almost here.”

“Let's give them a warm welcome.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

When Shiro and Lance return to the Facility 45 minutes later, they are met with an entourage and led to an office room. It has a modern look to it. Black desk with black shelves on the wall. There are a few potted plants here and there, likely fed by the sunlight through the window, which currently has blinds drawn over it. A single slim laptop sits closed in the center, and a black phone in the corner.

A man enters the room.

“Please sit,” he says, cordially. Lance recognizes him immediately.

“Oh! Mr. Coran!”

Shiro takes a seat, but his knuckles are white on the chair.

Lance paces, then comes to stand behind Shiro’s seat.

“Ms. Allura will be in shortly. She has questions for you.”

“We don’t have time for that!”

“I promise you, the more you cooperate, the better we can assist you. First of all, there’s nothing to be afraid of. You’re safe here.”

Shiro knows that’s the exact wrong thing to say, and unfortunately that’s right when the door opens.

“The FUCK do you mean it’s safe here?! I’ve been TORTURED for the last five years.”

“Lance.”

“And Keith-”

“LANCE!”

A beautiful woman takes a seat at the sleek black desk. “Hello, my name is Allura, and I run this Facility.”

Shiro looks stunned, quick to make the connection.  “You...you’re the one from the call.”

Lance, sobered by Shiro’s tone, looks at him in concern. “Wait, really?”

“Yes. I answered your call. You mentioned something of interest to me. Animals, you said.”

Shiro tugs Lance to him, making him sit next to him. He looks Lance dead in the eyes, and reaches out with his mind. He hopes Lance is focused enough to hear him.

_Lance. She’s the top dog here. She could be running the whole show._

His Sentinel shuffles, but speaks back.

_Or she might not know a thing. It could all be happening behind her back. I say we take the chance. Of anyone, she has the power to save Keith!_

_Fine. You know I trust you Lance. But just know, if this backfires on us, I will do absolutely everything in my power to save you and Keith, alright? Even at the cost of my own life._

_Shiro._

_No, Lance. I’m serious. Let me have this._

_I...I can’t Shiro._

_Then help me by keeping yourself safe. Because if you’re in danger I won’t hesitate._

“I love you,” Lance says aloud. “And I think we can trust her.”

Shiro bows his head, but grips Lance’s hand tight as the two turn back to Allura. He still doesn’t trust these people, but he’ll play along. For now. Shiro keeps his doubts locked in the back of his head. He’ll play in Lance’s favor. As soon as he has everything he needs, he’s busting Lance out.

Allura and Coran are sitting quietly, patiently, as the bond pair reach a conclusion.

Shiro gives Lance a final meaningful look, then sits straighter and faces Allura.

“We need your help. And you want information from us. Let’s work out a deal.”

Allura scoffs, dismissive, and it sets Shiro's hackles rising.

“You're hardly in a position to make any sort of deal. Tell me what I want to know and I won’t have you blacklisted.” She opens up her computer, a clear sign that they’ve been slighted. But before Shiro can let loose, Coran steps in.

“Ma’am, if I may. I believe we should listen to their demands.”

“What?”

“You want information, right? They seem like the ones who can give it to you.”

“Coran, please, I won’t just-”

“Fine, then we’re leaving.” Shiro stands, grabbing Lance’s hand and leading them out.

Allura stands, a stormy look on her face. She throws a hand out, finger pointing, accusatory. Coran moves as if to block her. Shiro reaches the door.

A klaxon sounds. Alarms blaring echo through the Facility.

Lance jumps, Shiro freezes.

“Coran!”

“The phone, Allura!”

On the desk the single phone is ringing. Allura runs to it, ripping it off the base.

“What is it! A what? Intruder alert! We...we’ve been breached?! What did they want?” A pause. Then Allura hangs up the phone. She turns to Coran, then her eyes slide to the two boys who are frozen in the doorway.

“Dorm #117 has been broken into.”

Shiro wobbles, knees going weak. Lance grasps his shoulders. “Breathe Shiro, it’s okay. We’re going to get him back.”

Allura has a perplexed look on her face. “Who?”

Lance turns to her cooly. “This is why we came for help. Keith’s been taken. He told us. That’s why we needed a ride back here.”

“Then you were lying about the animals?”

“No we weren’t. Look Allura, let us see the damage. I need- no, we need to see it.”

Allura gives him a frown, but doesn’t comment, as she and Coran lead them down to the dormitory floor. Allura’s heels click clack down the laminate, and it grinds into Shiro’s mind. Lance soothes him with a blanket of comfort, and Shiro sends a ping of thanks back. The boys don’t speak a word to one another, but Allura eyes them as if they did. They can see the investigation from the start of the hallway. Caution tape blocks the doorway, and the first thing they see is the broken swipe panel. The door is propped open, and they can see the mess among the security personnel swarming the place.

Shiro steps in to investigate for himself. Lance takes a deep breath, and turns away. He closes his eyes and leans against the wall, next to the panel. Heels click next to him, and there’s a soft thump as Allura leans against the wall next to him.

“I think we need to talk, Mr. McClain. Tell me about this Keith. I’m assuming he’s the reason your dorm is a crime scene. Either that or laundry was that atrocious.”

Lance smiles back bitterly, but keeps his eyes closed. He forces himself to visualize Keith as they last saw him, happy, warm, hopeful. He remembers their snuggles together, their game nights. Their happy memories. They didn’t have Keith very long, but it was strong, what they had. Idly, Lance wonders if they’ll ever see him again.

“He was… he made us everything. He made us whole.”

Shiro returns then, and wraps Lance up in his arms. “We’ll get him back, Lance. We’ll do whatever Allura wants of us. I’m sure we can reach a deal.”

Lance notices that Allura keeps her expression the same, but her eyes light up at that.

Damn.

Together, both Sentinel and Guide reach out for their Guardian. Their protector. But the spot where he used to be is cold and empty. They just feel the ache of where he used to be.

Neither boy acknowledges the giant, rusty red canine curled by their feet, whining.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The truck is rumbling down the road. It’s the middle of the night. Everything seems like it’s going to plan. The driver checks the time then turns to his help. The guy’s young, but big and tough looking. He’s not what he expected, but so far he seems competent. “How’s it looking back there?”

The new guy hired to help him looks at the small screen in his lap. It shows the inside of the truck bed. “It looks like he’s coming to.”

The driver glares over at the passenger.

“It.”

The guy looks up with confused look on his face. “Huh?”

The driver scoffs. This guy must be new. But he’ll learn soon enough.  “What are you, daft? It’s an asset, not a person. It’s unnatural.”

“Ah. Sorry.”

“Kid, how long have you been doing this job?

“Oh, I just started. This is my first time in the field”

The driver shakes his head. “Jesus Christ. Just shut up and do what I say.”

“Ok. Wait, the reading is showing something. I need to check it out.” He unbuckles and gets out of his seat, heading towards the doors leading to the truck bed.

“Hey get back here!” The driver turns his eyes from the road and the truck lurches for a second as the driver regains control of the vehicle. “Ah, shit!”

The is a voice right behind him. “Sorry about this.”

“Wha- AUGH!” The taser gets the driver right in the shoulder, and the truck starts swerving around as the driver falls unconscious.

“Whoops,” Hunk says. He shoves Zarkon’s driver out of the seat and pulls the truck over to the stop marked on his GPS. Hunk pulls out his personal device and presses a button. The doors behind him unlock with a hiss.

Hunk checks the camera to make sure the kid’s alive, and still restrained. This next part could get a little crazy, so while hates keeping him chained, Hunk doesn’t want anyone to get hurt. Especially since they already did a number on him.

Behind him, the convoy is stopping. Fortunately they are allies. This bust was sabotaged long before the driver even left for work this morning. Hunk exits the truck and swings around to the back. He heaves the heavy doors open. Light shines in from the street lights, and Hunk turns on the low lighting inside the truck.

The kid looks pitiful.

“What a mess. Hey man, you okay? Keith, right?”

The Keith blinks his eyes open. His eyes are glazed over. Either from a concussion, sleep deprivation, or something else. Hunk bets it’s a little bit of all three.

“My name is Hunk. We’re busting you out. You’ve been caught in the middle of a war, but we’re the good guys. We’re taking down Zarkon and the Facility.”

“Huh?”

“Here, let’s get you somewhere warm and safe.” Hunk throws a blanket around the kid, and unlocks the handcuffs. He helps him step out of the truck, but Keith's legs collapse. “Don't even worry. I got you.”

Hunk leads Keith over to the nearest truck, and hands him a bottle of water. “Start with this, okay? We’ll take good care of you.” Hunk moves to leave, but Keith’s hand shoots out and grabs his shirt.

“Wait, where are they?” His words slur, but his grip is tight.

“Who? The bad guys?”

“No, ah,” Keith hisses, as their medic starts treating Keith. “M-my friends. Shiro? Lance?”

Hunk’s eyes widen, but he catches himself and eyes the medic. Fortunately, the girl is smart and is focused solely on her duties. Her job is to ensure Keith is stable for the ride over to the HQ. He forces a grin on his face.

“Drink up, I’ll talk to you about them when we get to HQ, ‘k?”

Hunk leaves Keith, thoughts spinning. How does Keith know Lance and Shiro? Just what has Hunk gotten himself into?

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

They return to the top floor. _Allura’s floor_ Lance can’t help but call it now. They enter a penthouse-style suite. It’s honestly incredible and luxurious and it's not like their dorm was lacking or anything, but this new apartment is disgustingly opulent. Lance loves it. He can’t wait for Allura to hurry up and get the fuck out so he can explore. Their items from their damaged dorm have already been packed and brought up. All they need to do is move in. And deal with Allura.

She sits in the middle of the living room, on a dining chair that probably cost thousands. Coran stands behind her, taking notes on his tablet. Lance is sprawled on a couch that feels like silk clouds. Shiro sits next to him, a pillar of support.

They’ve been talking for what feels like hours. Shiro telling his story. Lance sharing his history, and his subsequent torture at the hands of Mr. Sendak. The lack of family visits. The finding of Keith, and the discovery of his treatment by Dr. Haggar. Allura keeps her expression flat when the corruption of her organization is mentioned, but her eyes spark. Lance can’t tell if its from anger at the betrayal, guilt at being found out, or the satisfaction of her power over them both. He feels Shiro’s suspicion riding high, and he nudges at him.

_I think she’s clean, Shiro. She’s feeling guilt and a whole lotta shock right now._

_So you say, Lance. But she also runs a Facility of HyperSens. I think she would know how to deal with us. She’d have experience._

Lance smiles, glad to have someone like Shiro on his side. Someone who has his best interests at heart, and who loves and cares for him with all their being. Lance thinks it’s the best feeling. If only Keith was here to bask in the love, too. His smile falters. Shiro grips his hand and give it a squeeze.

“Alright, we’ve talked about your pasts. Now, your future. You want my help getting Keith back. I’m not a charity, what do you offer in return?”

Shiro releases Lance’s hand and leans forward, hands clasped casually between his knees. It looks natural and relaxed, but everyone in the room suddenly get the sense of danger. Keith’s massive wolf-fox is curled at his feet.

“Ms. Allura,” Shiro starts off, voice light, “you want information on the animals. We want Keith back. We nearly walked out before, and we’ll do it again. I’d give you a list of our demands, in exchange for our cooperation.”

Nobody moves for a beat. Then Allura crosses her legs and leans back. “Please, let us hear it then.”

“First and foremost, we need your help getting Keith back. You don’t need to tell us who took him and why, just get him back.”

“If there’s no record of him, then you know as well as I do that he’s a missing person. Protocol dictates that we go the the police. That’s the law, Mr. Shirogane.”

“We’ll deal with that after we get him back. But you’ll accommodate him here. With us.”

“Hmm. I’m assuming there’s more to your conditions?”

“We want protection from this ever happening again. We still have one more year within the Facility before being hired out to the government. We’ll stay for that term.”

“If you have the information I seek, you and Mr. McClain may need to stay for additional testing. Please be aware.”

That takes Lance by surprise. “What! But… oh you mean… you’ll find a reason to keep us here.”

Allura doesn’t even blink. She picks up the water bottle on the floor by the leg of her chair. She drinks from it daintily, as if it were a glass of champagne. She returns the cap and puts the bottle back down. “We must ensure our HyperSens are in tip top condition. If we must do extra assessments to ensure their wellbeing, we will do all it takes so they are prepared for the field of work they are chosen for.”

Lance scoffs. Shiro clears his throat.

“Alright. We’ll stay on extra to give you what you need. You need to promise me that there won’t be any pain involved. No harm will come to any of us. Mental or physical.”

Allura get’s the dismissive look on her face again, the one where she looks above their shoulder rather than directly at their face. Lance is learning fast.

“There is no guarantee that the tests-”

“No. Harm. Ms. Allura.”

Shiro’s voice is cold as ice. His intention is clear. Waving a hand, Allura gestures at Coran. “Make a note, please. No pain or harm. Anything else?”

Shiro leans back, giving Lance the reigns. Lance gives Allura a smile and crosses his arms. She eyes him warily.

“I get to see my family whenever I want. We both do.”

This gets Allura’s attention. She stands angrily. “I cannot make such a promise! You are needed here!”

“Hmm, well, it’s been an awfully long time since I’ve gotten to see my family. How many visits am I missing? Anyone? Coran, be a pal and do the math.”

“Ahem.” Coran clears his throat. Lance likes Coran, so he almost feels sorry for putting him on the spot. Almost. “S-seven?” He hedges.

“Wow,” Lance says sarcastically. “Seven years. I think I should get to make up for lost time. What do you two say?”

“Fine.” Allura nearly bites it out, as she returns to her seat. “But they need to be scheduled in advance.”

“I’ll agree to that. And finally…” Lance trails off, snuggling in his warm hoodie. “This was a gift from my sister. Who I haven’t seen in seven years. I should get to keep it, shouldn’t I? Those old white uniforms are so bare. I think we should get a change of clothes. What do you think, Shiro? Black is such a good color on you.”

“Yes, a wardrobe change would be rather nice.”

Allura raises an eyebrow, but does not comment. She gestures at Coran, who notes in his tablet.

“Are those all of your demands?”

Lance and Shiro look at one another, then nod.

Allura smiles, sending a chill down both of their spines. “Very good. You’ll agree to additional testing and monitoring. Pain free and harm free. You may be asked to stay additional time with us, in order to provide information. You’ll be forthcoming and upfront with the information we ask for. And you’ll report directly to me or Coran. Do we have a deal?”

Shiro and Lance both nod. “Deal.”

“Excellent. Now, tell me about these animals you saw.”

Lance smirks, leaning back into the soft couch. Shiro does the same. “Well, for starters there’s a snow leopard on your left and a tiger on your right.”

Allura and Coran look shocked for a moment, before an ugly angry look crosses Allura’s face. “How dare you mock me after all I’m doing for you!”

Coran rushes to put a hand on her shoulder. “Allura, wait!”

Shiro shrugs. “We’re being forthcoming and upfront. If you can’t see them, it’s not our fault.” Then Shiro stands, easily towering over Allura.

“Now. I’ll ask nicely. Please. Help us recover Keith.”

Huffing, Allura heads for the door. Right as Coran reaches to open it for her, she stops and turns. “By the way, why is this Keith boy so important? Why do I need to find him?" 

“Oh that’s easy,” Lance answers. “We started seeing the animals after he showed up. If you want the animals, Ms. Allura, you’d best go get our boyfriend.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on Tumblr!  
> [Nutella0Mutt](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Another commission by the fantastic. [ISTEHLURVZ](http://istehlurvz.tumblr.com/)!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Please like it [here](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/173472774931/a-gorgeous-commission-by-istehlurvz-for-chapter).
> 
> EDIT: Please leave a comment below and tell me what you think! I feel like people don't like this chapter very much and I want to make sure I'm leaving you entertained! D:


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Good Guys | 3 |  
> Bad Guys | 1 |
> 
> Some people get what's coming to them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, thanks for the kind comments last chapter. New players are entering the playing field, and there's more angsty plot! Yay!
> 
> Look forward to some art by rou-tan-tan that's got me in tears!
> 
> School's almost out for summer! Then I will have more time for G&G! I'm also co-writing [It's All In the Eyes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14334357) with [Punkinpinkglitter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunkInPinkGlitter/pseuds/PunkInPinkGlitter), my piece for the [Voltron NSFW Big Bang](https://vldnsfwbigbang.tumblr.com/), and a future werewolf fic with [Eunioa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eunioa/pseuds/Eunioa)!
> 
> Look forward to some good stuff this summer! <3333

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Keith doesn’t remember the ride, but he remembers being guided to his room by Hunk. It’s a simple affair; white painted walls, a cot, some cheap furniture and a plastic table. There’s a door that’s likely the bathroom. But as Keith sits at the table waiting for Hunk to return, it’s never felt more like a prison. Keith can’t help the looming sense of dread. But on the other hand, he’s out. He’s free from the Facility. He just wishes it didn’t feel so lonely and empty. Keith hasn’t been gone from his bondmates long, but he feels an ache inside. He’s cold, and it’s not from the drafty walls. The light and warmth he used to feel inside after meeting Shiro and Lance is gone.

Keith hates to admit it, but he already desperately misses them. As he sits gingerly on the bed, he frowns. How pathetic is he? To think this would last. He knew it was too good to be true. But now the other two can continue their relationship without him messing everything up for them. He’s out of their hair.

Hunk returns as promised. He’s got a friendly look. Keith likes him immediately. Keith feels like around Hunk he can lower his guard. This whole rescue thing is pretty crazy and suspicious, since he’s hardly important enough to be rescued, but Keith can’t help but feel he’s got an ally in Hunk. The man in question brings food and bandages and clothes, and as Keith settles into his light meal, which is frankly the best he’s ever eaten, Hunk sits back and watches him from across the table.

“You seem to be adapting to this all pretty well.”

Keith shrugs, putting his spoon down. “Well... even if you guys are here to hurt me, I’ve been through worse. There’s isn’t much you can do that can get to me now. I’ve lost my two most important people. Not a lot worth living for.” Keith returns to his food.

Hunk looks startled, and holds his hands up. He seems stuck between reaching out to comfort and putting his hands up in defense. “Woah woah woah! Hang on there, bud. No need to go so dark, we’re here to help. Honest. Let me tell you a little about ourselves, and then you can decide what you want to do from there. Sound good?”

Keith nods, and Hunk leans back, settling in his chair.

“Well first off, we call ourselves the FPO, or Free Peoples Organization. We’re all about ensuring the freedom of all people, especially HyperSens. The FPO is trying to tear down the current Facility system, and allow HyperSens the same freedoms as regular people. We target specific Hypers, release them, and then let them share their stories with the world. We’re hoping that if enough people learn the truths hidden inside, the general public will reject the Facility system currently in place, and they will have to come clean. Soon there will be no more secrets.”

Taking a break from his food, Keith puts his utensils on the plate and pushes the dishes towards the center of the table. To him, it sounds like there’s more than one Facility, and they’re all equally shady. Keith resists the urge to scoff and shake his head. He doesn’t want to lead Hunk to the wrong idea, but he also doesn’t want to show all his cards too soon. Instead, he leans forward on his elbows.

“Can I ask you something?” Hunk says almost guiltily.

That throws Keith for a loop, not expecting an interrogation from someone like Hunk, but he steels himself.

“Okay,” Keith shrugs, trying to appear unbothered.

Hunk also tries to appear nonchalant, but it doesn't work. “So, you know Lance.”

Keith nods, not trusting his voice. Instead, he returns to his food.

“You said you were looking for Lance and someone else.”

Keith stops with the spoon halfway to his mouth. He lowers it back to the bowl, but it’s too late to try and deny his semi-conscious mumblings from earlier. “Uh, yeah. They’re...they’re my bonded.”

“You sure you’re talking about Lance McClain?”

“Yea. Like I said… he’s my bonded.”

“Well, he also happens to be my best friend. I'm trying to save him. I think you have the wrong Lance. Or you heard it somewhere.”

Keith shakes his head. “No! Lance is everything to me. Him and...” Keith trails off, unsure. He didn’t know how common three person bonds were.

“And? It’s ok Keith. You can tell me.”

“Lance and S-shiro.”

“Shiro? But Lance said…” Hunk trails off, lost in thought. Then he makes the connection to Lance’s cryptic words earlier. “Oh my god! If you’re his bonded, why didn't he mention you?”

“I don’t know?” Keith feels his heart break. Did he really mean so little? “You got to talk to him?”

“Yes, Lance visited yesterday. Well, he didn’t want to tell me the truth about Shiro either…” Hunk sees the look on Keith’s face, and stops his train of thought. “Keith,I think he was trying to protect the two of you. But Lance and Shiro visited yesterday without you. So why were you left behind?”

“I was being hidden. Shiro and Lance rescued me, and were hiding me. There was no way to leave without anyone finding out about me. But I guess it didn’t even matter. Somehow, they found out.”

Hunk looks at him sympathetically. Keith can’t stand it, so he changes the subject.

“Can I ask you some questions now? Who do you work for?”

Hunk is quick to reply, happy to change the subject as well. There’s no hesitation when he answers. “Lotor runs this whole thing. He didn’t start the FPO, but he’s the current leader. He provides the funds that make it all possible.”

Keith nods. Hunk seems to be telling the truth. Keith can’t pick up any feeling of deceit. “Hmm. And where do you get your intel from? About Facility secrets and which HyperSens to target?”

Hunk perks up immediately. “Oh man, we are SO lucky. We got a great guy on our side.” He leans forward almost conspiratorially, speaking in a mock whisper. “You ever heard of the RockDove?” He wiggles his eyebrows, and the whole thing is so ridiculous Keith has to work to keep from bursting out laughing. Keith apparently isn’t entirely successful, because Hunk almost looks affronted. “What? What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, haha. What the hell is a ‘rock dove?’”

“Not a rock dove. THE RockDove. You know, the ultra elite ethical hacker! The only one who can get into the Facility and see their secrets. The RockDove is on our side. They’re how we can figure out which Facility and which Hypers to free.”

“You mean, the ones who get fucked over the most.”

Hunk blinks at the crude language. “Well, yes. They find out which people need our help the most.”

“I have a suspicion that it all plays out according to Lotor’s agenda.” Keith lets the smirk play across his face. He’s learned that people are more open and truthful if they feel a little unsettled. He likes Hunk but Keith is basically still a prisoner.

Hunk narrows his eyes. “What do you mean by that? Explain. I mean, certain things have to play out according to plan, yes, but-”

“I mean, there was someone who really could have used this help years ago. Even before me. He was tortured!”

“I’m sure Lotor was going to get to whoever as soon as he could.”

“Hunk, it was my bondmate. Lance. He was only a kid, and they tortured him.”

Hunk freezes. Then his eyes narrow.

“You have info on Lance being mistreated? How do I know you’re telling the truth? We didn’t have any reports of him coming through.”

With a growl, Keith leans over the table, pointing angrily with his spoon. He realizes halfway through that Hunk is using the exact same strategies to make Keith feel unsettled, but he’s too riled up to care.

“I don’t care what you did or didn’t find! I’m telling the truth! Shiro explained how Lance was tortured at twelve years old and… well, Shiro said he was lucky to have survived the ordeal. A weaker child probably wouldn’t have. Why would you guys pick me over him?”

Anger radiates from Hunk, but he shakes himself, and Keith realizes absently that it’s not directed at him. “Alright. Okay. Goddamn it, I just knew it! We’re going to talk about this later. In detail.” The hard look in his eyes books no argument. “Maybe tomorrow because I need to process this.”

That is enough for Keith. “Fine, tomorrow. But now I want to know: how do you know Lance? You said you talked to him and Shiro yesterday. Are you two related?”

The hard line of Hunk’s mouth softens, until it pulls at a frown. “He’s my best friend. Or was, before he was taken from me. He’s the whole reason I’m with the FPO. I’ve been trying to get him back for years now.”

Keith and Hunk stare at one another, realizing their connection. They share Lance in common, both caring so much about his well being. They’ll need to learn to work together.

There’s a question Keith wants to ask burning at the tip of his tongue, but he holds it in. _Why wasn’t Lance the one rescued yesterday?_

But then Hunk lowers his head, letting it hang between his huge hands, and Keith can suddenly see a man plagued by eight years of grief. Before Keith can awkwardly reach a hand in comfort, Hunk heaves a huge sigh and pulls himself together again. He meets Keith’s eyes.

“Alright, the Lance thing aside, I just need to let you know. You were pulled because you were marked Priority One. It’s a scale from one to ten. One means ‘critical,’ or ‘dire.’ When a Priority One gets tagged, it’s an emergency evacuation. I don't have all the details, but apparently it’s pretty damn horrific.”

Hunk levels Keith with a look, begging him to understand the severity of his situation. When Keith says nothing, Hunk leans back and waves a hand at Keith.

“Do you have any other questions?”

“What does Lotor want with me?”

At that, Hunk shrugs. “Nothing, for now. He wants you fed and given a place to sleep.” Keith is not satisfied with that answer, but Hunk meets his look head on, not backing down, and Keith concedes. No point is riling up his only connection to Lance.

Keith picks up his spoon, and Hunk watches him eat. When Keith is done, Hunk points to the door behind Keith. “You got a bathroom with a shower. Can I help you with those bandages?” When he gets a nod, he brings his chair over to Keith’s side and begins undoing the tape. A neat little pile builds and Hunk moves around, removing tape and gauze. When he’s done he steps back. “I’ll wait here in case you need anything.”

Keith is too tired to argue, and the temporary pain meds they gave him for the ride have already worn off. He grabs the clean clothes and steps into the bathroom. Again, it’s simple, modest, but there’s toilet, a sink, and a shower. He strips and then just stands there, unable to find the energy to continue. In the mirror is a sad, straggly, wounded kid. Eventually, though, the promise of warm water calls to him, and he steps into the shower, hoping it might rekindle the vacant spot inside.

It doesn’t, so Keith makes the shower a brief affair. Keith does not let himself bask in the warmth. He dries briskly, mindful of his aches, and changes into the grey clothes left for him. They are soft, compared to the starchy facility garb, but though they fend off the chill, Keith still feels the cold emptiness within. There isn’t anything that can help him with that, though. The ones who can are long gone, taken from him, and he will likely never get them back. The least he can do is sever the connection so it’s a clean break. Soon the bond will dissolve and they’ll be able to move on without him.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next morning, Allura calls her targets into work early.

“Dr. Haggar. Mr. Sendak. Thank you for meeting me so early this morning. I'm afraid it couldn't wait.”

Sendak speaks up first. “What is it, ma’am?”

“Well, I've heard some disturbing thoughts recently. Mr. Coran, if would please.”

He hands over tablet.

“I've collected the data here. Please take a look. It seems like we have a leak. A security breach.”

Sendak’s hands on the tablet tighten, his knuckles turn white.

“You know I hold our facility in the highest regard. A lapse in judgment cannot happen. We conduct ourselves professionally at all times.”

Sendak is frozen. Just as Allura intended. In front of him is a list of all his waivers, forged signatures, bypasses in security. It's his death sentence.

Sendak jumps up, making a run for it. He passes Allura, bounds through the doorway, and shoves off the security grabbing for him.

He turns a corner, sprinting down the hallway.

A leg is thrown in his path and Sendak trips. Unable to catch himself, he goes sprawling, landing in a tangle on the floor. He scrambles to get up, but a heavy boot stomps on his back. Sendak turns his head to look up, ignoring the blood spewing from his broken nose.

Shiro crack his knuckles. “Hello Sendak.”

Sendak’s face goes pale. “Oh shit!”

“Oh shit is right.”

Shiro grabs Sendak around the throat, removing his foot as he hauls the man up.

“I-I didn’t do it!”

Shiro tightens his hold, and Sendak's fingers paw useless at Shiro's iron grip.

“I’m sure it was all an accident. Every beating. Every denied meal. Every cruel task you had for him. Isolation, cleaning with noxious chemicals without gloves. Denying him family visits. The Bond Pills. You didn't do any of those, did you? I must have the wrong man.”

Sendak wheezes. “I.. was forced…. There’s another….Zarkon!”

Shiro walks the two of them to the large, wide window nearby. “Look, the sun is rising. Let’s go take a closer look.”

“He- wait!” Then, Sendak’s mad scrabbling stops. He seems to take on a new persona. Shiro is suddenly aware that his man he now hold is the cruel one. With the last of his breath, Sendak starts chuckling. A horrible, wheezing laugh escapes his mouth, and his face takes on a cruel smirk.

“He! Deserved every…last.. Punish...ment. And… Shiro….” he trails off.

Sendak’s eyes flutter closed, and his mouth moves soundlessly.

Shiro growls, giving the man a hard shake. When nothing happens, he eases his grip a tiny bit.

Sendak jerks alert, the unconsciousness a ruse. His eyes open wide, wild. “I ENJOYED IT, AND YOU DID TOO. I BET YOU FUCKED THAT BITCH REAL GOOD. THEN I’D FU-”

Glass rains down, spilling into the hallway. Sharp shards catch in the light, and spray across the tiled floor.

Shiro, breathing heavily, pulls his empty fist back from the shattered window. Sendak’s body falls from the 19th floor, and his scream follows him down.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Allura doesn’t blink as the unmistakable sound of shattering window rings out, followed by a fading scream.

She collects her tablet from the floor where it was dropped, flicks though a few pages, then hands it to Dr. Haggar. The doctor doesn’t take it, instead looking Allura right in the eyes.

“I’m sure you already know what’s on here.”

“Undoubtedly a barrage of incriminating evidence. Likely from my time with Zarkon.”

Allura pulls her hand back, and returns the tablet to Coran. “Thank you, please leave us.”

“If you’re sure, Miss.”

“Very. Oh, and call in our guest, please.”

Coran bows, then leaves the room, holding the door open. Lance enters. Dr. Haggar straights up the tiniest bit. She’s been taken by surprise, Allura notes with satisfaction.

Lance’s face is blank. It’s likely the face he wore when Dr. Haggar was working with him. Or, torturing him, rather.

Lance sits down in the chair vacated by Sendak. He doesn’t look the doctor in the eyes. He folds his hands in his lap.

“I suppose I should thank you, in a way.”

Haggar tries, but she can’t keep from turning to look at Lance dubiously. Lance continues.

“Because of you, I can erect mental shield. That’s unheard of for Sentinels. It’s keeping me from feeling Shiro’s pain right now. The power of his emotions would probably have me unconscious right now, or at the very least, extremely compromised. But all those years of pain did bring about something good, in a twisted sort of way.”

The room is dead silent. Lance adjusts, and his chair squeaks.

“What I can’t forgive, however, is your treatment of Keith.”

Dr. Haggar finally speaks up at that. “Keith? This person is unknown to me,” she says dismissively.

Lance freezes. Allura holds her breath. Time seems to stop.

“You didn’t even ask his name, did you? You just tortured him over and over.” Lance feels like he’s falling apart at the seams. To see the face of not only his tormentor, but Keith’s too, is nearly too much. He tries to keep the repulsion off his face.

Dr. Haggar inspects her nails. She no longer feels threatened. Allura is curious to see how this plays out.

“Well, first of all, he was just a kid when you got your hands on him. Then, you drugged him, and electrocuted him. Ring a bell, yet?”

Dr. Haggar does not move.

“How about this to jar your memory. Subject #73.”

The reaction is immediate.

A scoff.

“The mongrel. A successful experiment if I do say so myself. Tell me boy, did you know he carries both Sentinel and Guide genes. The answer lies in his blood.”

Allura takes a step back, stunned. “Impossible!” She’s the head of the organization, sure, but Haggar is the one with the power in the room right now. Her information, if true, would be ground breaking.

Haggar ignores her, attention focused on Lance.

“I’m the one who ordered the Bond Pills. I’m sure that really messed him up, ha! Whatever’s left of him is already in Zarkon’s clutches. I wonder how long he’ll fair under that man.” Allura stumbles, but Haggar continues. She’s enjoying twisting the knife in. Always has.

“I couldn’t let them get their hands on my success, so I sabotaged it. He won’t last long. He’ll be Zarkon’s problem then. You can probably already feel him fading. I’ve never had the pleasure of seeing a bond fall apart from the inside out. I’m sure it’ll be a treat.”

She cackles, then rises from the chair.

“I have many other crucial business to attend to. Necessary to keep the other HyperSens alive. Now, if you’ll excuse me…” She rises to leave.

Lance throws himself from the chair and lunges at Haggar. Allura intercepts, but the both of them still crash into Haggar. The doctor is thrown into the door handle, and a hiss escapes her as she cradles her wrist.

Lance shouts out after her, trying to get free of Allura’s hands. “Just wait until I get a hold of you! Then you’ll be sorry!” He yells at the doctor’s retreating back. Once she is out of sight, all energy seems to leave Lance, and he sags in Allura’s arms. She helps him to the nearby chair.

The sniffles start, then the sobs. Allura pulls up a chair and holds Lance, petting his hair. They wait for Shiro to return, and then Shiro politely claims Allura’s spot, gathering Lance up and holding him tight.

The two say nothing to one another, but as Allura leaves them to their privacy, she can’t help but feel the burning sensation of guilt. This all happened under her watch. She’s just as much to blame as the others. It’s time to sweep the place clean. She makes a note to talk to Dr. Haggar’s assistant. It’s true Haggar’s knowledge is irreplaceable and crucial. But if the assistant has picked up any pointers, they might actually be able to get rid of Haggar without sacrificing the health of their HyperSens.

But first, she needs to gather her intel group and dig up everything they know about Zarkon, because last she has heard, he’d been dead for the last 20 years.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

When Hunk reports to the Commander later, he’s met with a scoff. Lotor is sitting at his desk, filing some paperwork. “Why do I have doubts as to his intentions? He sounds more and more like a planted spy.”

Hunk shrugs. He considers himself a pretty good reader of people. That’s part of the reason why Hunk is the official greeter. “I dunno man. I think he's telling the truth.”

“He just wants the protection.” A notification pings on his tablet, and Lotor stands to read it, preferring to pace the room while absorbing new data. All the people working at the FPO have learned to give Lotor wide breadth when he’s reading on his tablet. Hunk does the same and stands back. Lotor continues musing, however. “That or he's trying to divert attention. He could just be saying names he heard at the facility. There's no record of him going there. He could be a spy.”

He’s already dismissing Keith, but Hunk won’t give up on the kid that easily. “I still think he's telling the truth, though. What harm could he be?”

That causes Lotor to stop, and he turns his head to look at Hunk over his shoulder. “What harm could he be? He could bring this entire operation down! Tell you what, we’ll test his bond.”

“Uh… why don't I like the sound of that.”

“It will help us determine just how dangerous he really is. Thank you Hunk, for your earlier help. You are no longer needed tonight. You can return home.”

Lotor gestures to the door, a clear invitation to leave. Hunk, heeding the command, heads towards the door while shaking his head. His first mission is to save his best friend, but if Keith is really Lance’s bonded, then he’s gotta save Keith, too.

Hunk is so lost in thought wandering down the hallway, he trips over something on the floor, and barely manages to catch himself.

“What the-? That’s new.”

A bundle of cords trail from one room, and head down the hall.

“They really ought put down something so people dont trip in the doorway.”

He takes another step towards the exit, then stops.

“But...where are they going? That’s a lot of power going to the unused part of the warehouse. The storage areas are over there. This is enough to power some nifty stuff.”

Curious, Hunk starts following the electric cords. They turn right, go down the stairs a level, then right again into the smallest of the storage rooms.

Hunk turns on his flashlight and continues to follow the cords, until he reaches a dead end. A small hole has been drilled through the wall, and the cords run right through. When he heads to the door of the room, it’s sealed closed. Hunk tries the handle but it’s locked shut.

“Hmm, I’ll need to come back and check this out. But first, I need to head home. Gotta be home before sunrise.” Hunk retraces his steps and heads back to his house, head full of ideas.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Back in the privacy of their new room, Shiro finally gets the story from Lance. The two sit on their newer, softer couch, minds in turmoil. Neither has the heart to help the other.

Shiro holds his head in his hands. “So she really said he’s going to die soon?”

Lance nods. “And she said once he does our bond will disappear.”

Shiro clenches his eyes closer. The despair seems like too much. He feels like it will swallow him whole. He promised to keep both Keith and Lance safe. How can he protect them from this.

Lance puts his hand on Shiro’s shoulder and squeezes. “Did you get anything from Keith yet?”

Shiro shakes his head. “No.”

“Damn. I was hoping I just couldn’t sense him. Do you think he’s alright?”

“I think he's blocking us.”

“Wait, really?”

“I think that’s why it’s like a vacuum. If he were gone, it would be more consuming, like a black hole. At least, that’s what I remember overhearing some of the scientists saying once.”

Lance perks up. He’ll take even the smallest chance.

“Shiro, let’s try.”

“What?”

“Let’s try reaching out to him together. Like we did to find him. You reach out emotionally, and I’ll bounce the signal. I think we’ll be able to crack any shield he’s got up.”

“But Lance, what if he’s doing it to protect us? Maybe he’s in pain or they are somehow tracking his bond.”

“Then we'll deal with that later. But I need to know that he’s okay, Shiro.”

“Fine. Okay.”

They clasp hands, then link minds. Lance channels their bond, and the two of them push their energy out. It seems to stretch on endlessly, nearly lost to space. But then it’s like they hit a wall.

_This is him! He’s on the other side!_

_Push, Lance. Let’s get our bondmate back._

Shiro visualizes himself walking along a path, only to be stopped by a giant sequoia log. It stretches on endlessly in both directions, and can’t be climbed. It has to be moved. Shiro pushes and strains, but the huge log does not budge. The snow leopard sits perched on a rock nearly, silently watching.

Lance imagines himself walking along a beach, watching a massive incoming tsunami rushing to the shore. The force of nature wants to obliterate him and swallow him whole. But he won’t let it. His mate is on the other side of it. If he lets it destroy him, he’ll never find Keith. He lifts his hands, bracing against the deadly water. He is but one man against the world. The tiger lays in the sand, licking a paw, unbothered by Lance’s struggles.

The two strain, unsuccessful on their own. But Shiro leaves off his personal struggle to help Lance, and the two of them manage to thwart the crushing waters. Panting, the two return to Shiro’s gigantic log, and slowly, miraculously, it inches back, revealing a trap door hidden beneath. Their two guardian spirits are gone, but Keith’s wolf-fox pads over and sniffs at the old wooden door at their feet.

Lance looks up at Shiro. “I think this is it. This might lead us to him.”

Shiro, suddenly nervous, reaches out for Lance’s hand. “What… what if he doesn’t want to see us?”

Lance squeezes his hand in response. “Reach into your heart, Shiro. Do you feel him there? That’s the little part that lives in both of us. He hasn’t disappeared, he’s just making himself hard to find. I have a feeling it might be because he doesn’t want us to be in danger. He might be trying to protect us, especially if Zarkon really does have him.”

Taking a deep breath, Shiro holds it, then lets it out. “Alright then. We’ll just have to convince him that we still want him, and that we’ll be able to handle whatever he’s going through. I think we might even be able to help him bear some of the pain. I’d heard rumors, but it might be possible.”

“Only one way to find out.” Lance kneels, followed shortly by Shiro. Lance pulls up the rusty handle, and both peer into the pitch black void. The wolf-fox makes the first move, crouching and jumping right in without hesitation.

“Well, I’m not going to let that fox outshine me! Here we go!” Lance sits so his feet dangle first, then slides down, holding on with just his hands. “See you on the other side, Shiro!” Then he too is gone.

Shiro swallows nervously, then wiggles his way into the doorway, and lets himself fall. At least they’re in this together, Shiro thinks.

After falling for what feels like forever, he lands. It’s a little jarring, but not nearly as bad as it should be in theory. Lance is already there, watching the wolf-fox trotting off. Lance grabs Shiro’s hand with a smile, and leads him along after. They are in a warehouse, but while a little beat up, it’s serviceable. They jog down a hallway and begins to see electric cords, storage containers, and computers, but no people in sight. The wolf-fox stops outside a room, curls in preparation for a jump, and leaps through the door, disappearing right through it like a ghost. Shiro and Lance stop just in front, and Shiro reaches across to nudge it open.

There on the bed is Keith. He’s sitting on a simple cot, arms full of his guardian spirit, hiding his face in the creature’s rich auburn fur. The sight of him takes Shiro’s breath away.

“Keith.”

The boy looks up, teary-eyed, a huge smile across his face. Once he takes in the sight of the two of them, however, his smile falls.

“Lance, Shiro! What are- I thought I blocked you! It isn’t safe!”

Shiro charges forward, Lance right on his heels, sweeping Keith up into his arms. Keith gasps, and Shiro pulls back, inspecting Keith. “Did Zarkon get you? Are you hurt?” He eyes the bandages on Keith’s body, and the nasty bruise across his neck. Lance doesn’t wait, and grabs Keith from behind, toppling all three of them to the ground.

Laughing and shaking his head, Keith tightens his arms around his Guide while his Sentinel buries his face in the back of his shirt, tears freely running down his face. Keith sniffles, trying to keep his own at bay. “No, someone intercepted my transfer. The Free Peoples Organization, or FPO. They said they have someone called the RockDove working for them.”

Lance tilts his head. “RockDove? Why does that sound familiar? Either way, we need to get you out. We don’t know if these guys are any better than Zarkon. He’s the one Haggar used to work for, the reason why she did such awful things.” He closes his eyes and curl his hands into fists. Shiro puts a comforting hand on Lance’s shoulder.

Keith’s eyes widen in shock. He makes an aborted move to stand up and push off his bondmates, but stops himself. “No, I’m sorry. I’m broken, and I’m only going to make this whole mess worse. Just let me go, alright?” Tears fall down Keith’s face again. “I’m so happy I got to know you two, but please, for me, just go on to live happy lives.” Keith closes his eyes, and the world begins to fade.

“Wait! Keith!”

Keith slowly shake his head no, sadness closing his features. “It’s better this way. I need to keep you safe from me.”

The illusion disappears.

In the next second, Shiro and Lance are back in their new room, still holding hands. Shiro breaks away with a yell. “Argh! That self-sacrificing, martyr!” He growls. “When I get my hands on him…” He trails off, frustration leaving him unable to put his words together.

Lance falls on the the couch with a heavy sigh, wiping tears from his face. “I mean, we aren’t giving up on him. But at least we know he’s alright so far and not with Zarkon.” He looks up at his Guide. “Tomorrow, after our tests for Allura, we’ll try again, alright? He can only hold us off for so long. We have irresistible charm.”

He reaches out to Shiro, who lets Lance pull him into a warm embrace. “Tomorrow, alright?”

Breathing in deep, Shiro holds it, then exhales, releasing his tension and frustration. “Tomorrow,” he agrees.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next day, however, there is no test. It’s a conference. And by the looks on everyone's faces as Shiro and Lance arrive, it’s a serious topic. Coran gestures the newcomers to the last two empty seats, and as the boys sit, the meeting begins. Allura stands, and leans her hands on the table. She looks nothing like she did two days ago. Her hair, makeup, and clothes are impeccable as always, but her eyes and the sag of her shoulders speak of restless nights.

“Thank you everyone for coming on such short notice. I will give a brief introduction. I have here the lead personnel from the relevant departments. I have Dave Monahan from Bonds, Pidge Gunderson, our new Medical lead, Kristen Parker from Trials, and Mr. Kolivan from Intel. Joining us are Takashi Shirogane and Lance McClain, Pair 1046. You all got the memo this morning that Dr. Haggar was escorted off the premises by security, and that Ms. Gunderson will be replacing her.”

She notices Lance and Shiro look at one another out of the corner of her eye. No, they did not get the memo, but hopefully they weren’t about to make a scene about it. She hadn't the time to catch them up before the meeting. Allura continues.

“Also in that memo, Pair 1046 was introduced to someone who was called Subject #73 aka “Keith,” and bonded, becoming Trio 01, as confirmed by Mr. Monahan and Ms. Gunderson.”

Allura pauses and takes a deep breath. She knows she is putting Shiro and Lance on the spot, but if they’re going to be successful in uprooting the corruption from her Facility, she’ll need this small team to feel like they can trust her. Allura carries on where she left off.

“Not in your memo was the reason why Intel is here. Mr. Kolivan is here because of the break in last night. We believe Dr. Haggar’s involvement with Zarkon is the reason for not only the illegal human experimentation, but the kidnapping of Keith. Keith was an artificial HyperSens that carries both Sentinel and Guide genes in his blood. We believe Zarkon wanted this person, and orchestrated the kidnapping.”

The people around the table gasp. Allura takes her seat. The only one not very surprised are the HyperSens, but they experienced all that first hand.

Ms. Gunderson stands up. She’s young, Allura thinks. But she’s smart. She had come to Allura in the middle of the night, and explained why she was at the Facility working under Haggar. Initially, Allura had no appreciated the deceit, but it had served her well, and was now going to save the lives of countless others. She is the whole reason they could finally be rid of Haggar, although Allura has a feeling they won’t be seeing the last of her.

“Ahem. I was studying under the former Dr. Haggar, and I have some confidential data on Keith and the status of the trio.”

The new head of the Medical department turns to address Shiro and Lance directly, and the two boys sit of straight. She is small but mighty.

“Some of the injections Keith got were medicine to help keep him and his artificial genes stable. When he was rescued by you, he was falling into a withdrawal. Once you three bonded, however, you were were keeping his hormone levels in check, basically acting as a natural remedy. Now that he’s been taken, Keith is falling into a withdrawal again, and you three will begin to experience bond failure.” She pulls up a document on her tablet for reference, then returns to her presentation.

“What this means for you initially is a decrease in performance and the effectiveness of your skills. If Keith dies, the bond between you two will also be severed.”

The boy Lance inhales in shock, and his Guide puts a calming hand on his shoulder. Ms. Gunderson gives them a sympathetic look, then faces Allura.

“If you want your trio in tact, you need to get him ASAP. Shiro, Lance, have you two been able to reach him?”

Shiro shakes his head. “We tried last night, but he put up a barrier. He wasn’t with Zarkon though. Someone called the Free Peoples Organization intercepted him and has him under their care.”

Mr. Kolivan leans over to whisper something in Allura’s ear, then stands to leave. Ms. Gunderson sits and makes some notes on her tablet, then addresses Shiro again.

“Keep trying to reach him. You can’t let him shut you out. That will speed the disintegration along. If you need some ideas, Mr. Monahan or myself will be happy to help you.”

“Thank you Ms. Gunderson,” Allura says. “Everyone is dismissed. Please, see to the tasks I’ve appointed you, and report back to me at the end of the day. Coran, get me Security lead. I have some data for him.”

As the people gathered begin filling out, Lance stands up abruptly, ignoring Shiro’s concerned look, and scoots around the table to talk to Dr. Haggar’s assistant. He tugs on her coat. “Wait! Ms. Gunder-”

The assistant smiles and interrupts him. “Pidge, please call me Pidge, Lance. What can I do for you?”

“P-pidge. Um... how long do we have?”

She gives Lance a confused look. “What?”

“Before the bond...goes. Before Keith does. How long do we have?”

The smile falls from Pidge’s face. “No more than a week.”

Blood seems to drain from the Sentinel’s face, but fortunately Shiro comes to wrap Lance up in his arms.

“It’s okay, we’ll do this together. We’ll save him, just like we did before.”

Lance closes his eyes, burying his face in Shiro’s chest, and Pidge quietly closes the door behind her as she leaves them to their grief.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on Tumblr! [Nutella0Mutt](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Also, tell me what you think in the comments. Any predictions or observations you have? We are solidly right in the middle of the plot. :D
> 
> I also pushed myself to handle the emotional moments better and give them the depth they deserve. I get so excited about the action that I skip some great emotional development. Let me know if I did an okay job this time round.
> 
> There are some truly great writers like [arahir](https://archiveofourown.org/users/arahir/pseuds/arahir) and [Magisterpavus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/magisterpavus/pseuds/magisterpavus) that capture emotions so well my heart physically hurts. They are huge sources of inspiration, so I'm trying to learn from the best!
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> A heartstring-tugging piece by the talented [rou-tan-tan](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/174541624771/a-heartstring-tugging-piece-by-the-talented)!!!
> 
> Please do NOT repost it! Instead, you can like it [HERE](http://rou-tan-tan.tumblr.com/)!


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ties break and are reforged anew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! This chapter is pretty emotional, fyi.  
> Season 6, y'all. And all the following interviews. Just awesome.  
> I'm happy Keith got a space wolf. Knew wolves would be a good match :3
> 
> Thanks again for you patience! I love each and every one of you so much. Thanks for jumping along on this adventure. Tell me what you think and what you predict will happen next.
> 
> See the ending notes for stuff to read while you wait! <3

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The crystal decanter shatters against the window pane, leaving huge whisky-covered cracks in the glass. Amber liquid drips, staining the carpet.

Zarkon grabs the glasses next, chucking them at the wall. They break on impact, falling in pieces on top of the mess of papers littered about. Files are ripped, bookcases upended, cabinets toppled. 

There’s another ferocious yell of anger, followed by more breaking.

The secretary Edith stands in the doorway, unflinching. 

“Director. Some good news.”

Zarkon spins, converging on her. Sweat drips from his red face. His suit is stained, torn. Hair disheveled. 

“What!” he snarls out, getting right in her face. “What news could possibly be good?!”

His arms swing out, grotesquely presenting the room in a mockery of a polite display. 

Edith takes a deep breath, maintaining her composure.

“The tracker is still functional. We’ve found the asset’s location. It’s in the custody of the FPO.”

Zarkon stills. Then he pulls himself up, straightens his tie, adjusts his suit. With a hand he smooths his hair back into place. 

“I see. It is time to pay my son a visit, then.”

  
  


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

At the FPO headquarters, Lotor summons Hunk.

“Hunk, please escort our newest arrival to the medical ward. We’re going to test his bond.”

Hunk knew this was coming, but it still doesn’t sit right with him. Bonds seems like private business, but he understands that if this really is one of a triad, they have to be sure. Keith could change the game for them.

“What am I telling him? That we’re testing him?”

Lotor hums. “Hmm, better not. We don't want him preparing. Remember, some HyperSens are capable of faking the bonding hormones. It would just make his lie more convincing if he could prepare for it.”

An assistant enters the room with some data, and Hunk has a moment to himself. This doesn’t feel right. It’s almost like Lotor is putting aside someone’s health and safety for his own gain. That’s hitting a little too close to the Facility’s whole deal. But he’ll continue to gain whatever info he can before making any hasty decisions. 

Hunk clears his throat to get Lotor’s attention back. Their general almost seems shocked to see him still in the room, expecting Hunk to have left already. But he smooths his expression quickly. 

“Yes? Did you have a question, Hunk?”

“Can I be in the room with him while this is going on?”

Lotor narrows his eyes. “No. We can’t have any distractions.”

Hunks tries a different approach. “Keith trusts me. He might be more cooperative. He hasn't met you yet, and he might try to fight. He was just kidnapped. He’s still a little spooked. I’m sure a friendly face will help ease him.”

There’s a long pause as Lotor just stares at him. Hunk feels like he’s being assessed. Like he’s the one being tested, examined under a microscope. But while he feels like sweating, Hunk holds his gaze.

“Very well,” Lotor says, quick like a whip. He returns to his conversation with the assistant, and Hunk is quick to leave, not wanting Lotor to change his mind. 

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Allura’s voice comes over the intercom. “Alright. Gentlemen, please take your places. We’re going to begin the evaluation. Pretend this is a normal simulation mission.”

Lance, donned in his black sim suit, closes his eyes and breathes, before turning to his corner of the room. He knows this is just a routine mission, but it feels like there are hundreds of prying eyes watching his every move. Rather than studying his abilities, this time Allura and the evaluators are checking his bond with Shiro and Keith. Allura and Pidge promise that they will use the data to help determine the health of the bond and Keith, in addition to collecting general information on the functionality of their trio. 

_ She better keep her promise, _ Lance thinks to himself.  _ Or I’ll sic my big bad Guide on her! _

Of course, his Guide is privy to any thoughts Lance has, and Lance can hear Shiro chuckling in his head. He doesn’t get a chance to reply to Shiro, because between one blink and the next, the scene changes from the empty simulation room to a inner city street. There are a ton of people yelling and screaming, and Lance immediately picks up on the type of mission this is. On one side of the dirty street are rows of policemen in riot gear, guns raised, fingers twitching near the trigger. Across them on the opposite end are civilians, angry and itching for a fight. The loudspeaker announces: MAINTAIN THE PEACE. 

A car bursts into flames, and the rioters cheer as glass shatters and smoke billows. An officer jerks out of formation, and the captain snaps at them to get back in line.

Lance is among the rioters. He’s in civilian clothes, a bandana tied around his mouth. But a quick pat down and Lance realizes he’s packing. He’s got a handgun on him. He’s undercover as a rioter, likely earning trust to infiltrate the group leaders. But the objective is not to eliminate the target. It’s to maintain the peace. How unfair to groom a lethal killer, train him in only the deadly ways, and then tell him to solve a problem without violence. Sweat breaks across his skin. Lance feels his anxiety spiking. This is completely different from any of their previous missions or trainings. This was an exercise in inaction.

He feels that revelation mirrored.

Shiro!

Shiro’s on the other side of the street. Somewhere amongst the helmets, bulletproof vests, and shields is his Guide. He’s feeling the building stress. His comrades are getting fidgety as the people in the street raise their voices. Some start throwing rocks, bottles, cans.

Tension is building. Things are coming to a head.

The crowd Lance is in is getting restless. The leaders huddle to finalize their plans. Groups split off as people get into position. Lance doesn’t know what the plan is. That makes everything worse. And what about the officers? What is their purpose here? Are they just a presence or is there an objective?

In response to the mob, uniformed men and women people into formations. The first line raises their shields. The second line raises their guns.

_ What do we do, Shiro?! How can we maintain the peace here? There are so many antsy people! _

For the first time in his life, Lance feels despair pouring from Shiro. Then he’s resigned, and hardens his mental barrier between him and Lance. 

_ Shiro! What are you doing?! We need to work together! _

_ I’m sorry, Lance. That’s not my objective. My job is to eliminate the targets. _

Shiro slams down his wall, and Lance is in the dark.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Ten minutes later, Keith delicately takes a seat on the metal folding chair in the middle of the room. He’s unsure what to expect, so he’s hesitant. There’s a machine off to one side, and some computers are hooked up to it. There’s a strange guy with platinum blonde hair, an assistant, and Hunk. Hunk is the only reason Keith agreed to this. He had said something about being on Keith’s side.  _ I’ll watch out for you _ , he’d said. 

The assistant guy comes over with a needle attached to a thin electric cord. Keith feels his dread coming in full force. Another experiment?

The assistant holds it up, letting Keith get a good look at it. 

“It will read from your bloodstream. Try not to move.”

The guy injects the needle in his inside elbow, then tapes it in place. Keith adamantly keeps from looking at it, instead clenching his other arm into a fist. He feels the urge to run, to escape mentally. Lotor flicks some switch. The lights dim. Keith waits breathlessly. 

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance panics in the emptiness. Fuck! What everloving hell?! They have different objectives?

That’s when it hits Lance. They are on opposite sides of this. Enemies. This mission is about turning against one another for the sake of the mission. Maintaining their cover for the bigger cause. Instantly, Lance feels ill. He hates everything about this. Damn this mission! Damn Allura and her fucking tests! Lance has half a mind to refuse to participate. A throwback to his Unmatchable days. But it won’t do him, Shiro, or Keith any good, so Lance grits his teeth throws himself to the front of the mob. Unlike Shiro, Lance keeps his mind wide open, sending pleas to not do it so they can figure it out together. Lance went into this prepared to have Shiro’s back. Now, as he singles out one officer and stands in front of him, he realizes he’s making himself Shiro’s target. Lance raises his hands in front of him. Across from him, Shiro’s eyes widen from under his helmet, before his eyebrows lower, a hard look settling across his face. He’s got a gun aiming straight at Lance. 

For some reason, staring down the inevitable death, Lance forgets it’s a simulation. It all seems so real. Lance reflects, wondering if he has any regrets in this life. The abuse suffered at Sendak’s and Haggar’s hands is suddenly meaningless, and his thoughts stray to Keith and Shiro.

_ I wish I had more time with them,  _ Lance thinks. 

There’s a small ping of alarm outside of Lance’s awareness. But Lance only has minutes left to reminisce so he ignores it. This is his time, damnit, and no one’s gonna take it from him!

_ I wish I had more time with my family. Why didn’t I just run away when I had the chance? Hunk even told me he could help me escape, and then Keith went missing anyway. Keith was already out of the Facility. Why did I bother coming back here? Keith is free and I could be, too. I could be away from the prying eyes and tests. _

Tears prick at the corner of Lance’s eyes as regret burns hot and sour down his throat like bile.

_ I hate the Facility so much. But they’ve really helped my family. My siblings went to college and my family has the luxury to buy nice things. My parents’ careers are doing great. That’s all in exchange for me. If I ran away, what if it paints a target on their back? Ruins their opportunities?  _

Lance pushes through the regret, and stands up tall, chin up. He slowly pulls out his handgun, and all the officers quickly zero in on him, sighting him through their scopes.

The words  _ sacrificial lamb  _ echo in his head. He’ll be the target so his family is protected. He’ll take the hits so Keith can be saved. He’ll be the one Shiro has to shoot so the civilians remain unharmed. 

This is his purpose. He is the Sentinel, after all. 

 

Protector. 

Guardian. 

Shield.

 

Lance levels the handgun at Shiro, safety still on. Behind his bandana, his expression is hidden. Lance knows how it looks. He wants their eyes on him. The captain shouts an order, and all safeties are flipped off.

_ What are you doing, Lance?! Put the gun down! _

Lance shakes his head, apologetic. 

“I have to do this,” he shouts aloud, voice pitched to carry over the noise. The people behind him still, attention focused on Lance. The officers have converged on him, ignoring the rest of the angry crowd. 

_ Shiro, take care of Keith. Treat him right, he’s seen so much bad in the world. _

Two minds are yelling at him now. Disbelief and shock. Lance takes a second to appreciate the fact that Keith seems alright, then zones. He focuses on the sounds. Hundreds of heartbeats pounding around him. Racing in fear, panic, anxiety, confusion, anger, shock. Shiro’s stands out to him immediately. 

If he zones, he won’t feel the pain.

It’s a wimpy way out, but Lance can’t think of any better way to go than losing himself in Shiro.

A bang rings out.

Lance gasps.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

 

The machine turns on with a hum, and immediately Keith feels like he's underwater. It feels a little like he's floating, and he can't hear anything at all. The world is silent. A huge black plant-like thing swims towards him in slow motion like an eel. It pulls back a long leaf-like skin to reveal row upon row of wickedly sharp teeth. It looks like thousands. The maw stretches wide, then slowly closes upon him. Keith feels nothing but a vague icy feeling, but as the teeth pierce his skin, blood blossoms. They continue to close until he's practically speared in half. Still, no pain. Just a chill. Right as the teeth are about to pierce his heart, a spike of pain shoots up his spine.

Then the teeth catch on something delicate and glass like and Keith is dimly aware that it’s his heart. As the glass shatters and spills, it’s like a black hole explodes out, spilling his center out into the world. It’s fierce and the edges catch and tear, ruining him. Two strands fly out, unraveling from the seams, fraying at the edges. Royal blue and rich purple. Keith tries to grab at them to keep them safe within. He feels Lance’s essence burn blindingly bright, and raises a hand to fend off the light. Then the burning blue flickers out. Keith feels like his heart is being ripped out. Lance is gone. The shock and pain resonates within, banging against corners like a echo. It’s unbearable. A howl sounds, mournful, adding to the cacophony of feeling. 

Lotor makes a note on his tablet as Keith screams.

“Looks like he was telling the truth. Two bonds; one to a Guide and one to a Sentinel. How unnatural. The public would be disgusted if they discovered this is what the facility was up to now. This boy will turn out to be very useful to us. Makenzie, end sequence.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Shiro kneels on the floor of the training room. He’s still in the black suit, preferring to be there for his Sentinel rather than change into his clothes. Lance is cradled in his arms, head resting against Shiro’s chest. He’s still out cold.

Facility personnel came to collect Lance and take him to Medical, but Shiro growled at them until they backed off. Allura attempted to placate him, but he turns her away with a glare and a promise that they’ll have words later. Coran intervenes before an argument can ensue, and clears everyone out of the room. 

Shiro wants to carry Lance to their room, but first he needs to make sure Lance really is okay. The Guide curls over Lance protectively, carefully withdrawing himself from any mindscapes as not to burden Lance. Sentinels that zone are fragile once brought back, and the harder the pull to bring them back, the more strain is put on the brain. HyperSens have incredible mental prowess, but underneath it all they are still only human.

He feels Keith trying desperately to reach them, but while he wants nothing more than to reach out and reassure him, he can’t risk it with Lance so vulnerable right now. Once he’s sure of the state Lance is in, then they can reassure Keith. 

So instead of following his heart, he gently pushes Keith away and draws himself and Lance out of their heads and into the present. Lance will have no dreams while he rests, and Shiro will stay rooted in the physical world. This will give Lance a chance to heal.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

A scream brings Keith to the present. He realizes it’s him. Tears fall from his face.

What was Lance doing?! Why was he there! It was just a simulation, right? Why did it feel so real?

Keith tries to fight his way to his bond mates, but they aren’t there. He peeks through their mindscapes for a hint of them, but the environments are empty of them. Instead of their beautiful worlds, there is only ruin. Black and charred like a fire had raged through. Shiro’s trees have fallen; trunks split and broken. The sight of the mighty trees crushed on the ground tugs at Keith’s heart, and tears fall as he mourns the fall of the mighty sequoias. As Keith walks among the destruction, he sees broken nests and feathered bodies, and he hurries on. Lance’s world is even more disturbing. There’s no water. Just a hot sun drying the last of the wet soil. Warmed sand stretches on and on. Keith pulls back in shock. Something terrible happened here!

Worried, Keith tries to send thoughts directly to Lance and Shiro, but they echo in the emptiness. 

It’s like they vanished.

Has he lost them for good?

He knew it might happen eventually, but the reality of it is still upsetting. What did he expect, pushing them away when they just wanted to make sure he was alright? Now he’s left with just their abandoned worlds. They likely went on and made their own, together, and Keith only has the wreckage to serve as a reminder of what they once had together.

This is what he deserves.

The machine shuts down and the assistant goes to remove the needle from Keith's arm. He doesn’t react, just slouches limply in his chair, dazed. Empty.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Allura sits at her desk, busying herself with email correspondence as she awaits the results. Coran stands by, tablet in hand.

Eventually, Ms. Gunderson approaches with a serious look on her face. She’s trailed by Mr. Monahan from Bonds. Both look less than happy.  Coran waves them in. Allura stands to greet them.

“Hello. I trust you have the simulation results?”

Pidge frowns harder. Dave steps forward.

“Actually, ma’am, about that…”

He trails off, looking to Pidge for support. She nods and Dave sighs before steeling himself. 

“We don’t think it was appropriate. We can conduct our tests in less-extreme simulations. What we did to that Sentinel-”

“It wasn’t right,” Pidge interrupts. “Nothing about that was okay! What were you thinking?!”

Allura blinks as if surprised by the attack, and she looks to Coran for assistance. But he remains standing by the door, arms crossed. It dawns on her that she does not have Coran’s support right now. He is siding with the others.

“I see. You don’t agree with my choice.” Allura sits gracefully, then waves towards the two chairs in front of her desk. Pidge and Dave choose to stand instead.

Pidge slams her hands on the desk. She’s pissed. Dave jumps in surprise, but no one else moves. 

“Allura, excuse my language, but what the  _ fuck _ ?! We’re trying to gain their support! We want to show them we can be trusted. Ignoring all the shit they’ve been through already here at the Facility, which, by the way, we CAN’T, you would think that one might make their very first move with them a harmless one. But no, you throw them into the one of the most traumatizing situations created?! It will be a damn miracle if they ever agree to work with us again.” She storms off, grabbing Dave on the way. At the door she stops.

“Oh, and here are your fucking results! Don’t come to us unless it’s with an apology.” Pidge tosses the tablet carelessly behind her and leaves. The tablet, in its durable case, does not crack, but clatters helplessly to the ground. Coran exits the room after Pidge and Dave, a clear dismissal.

Allura stands and retrieves the tablet. She returns to her desk, scrolling through the raw data, until she gets to the summary of results at the end of the document. 

> Based on the performance of the Sentinel and Guide subjects of the Trio 01 showcasing the hyperacute sensory ability (HyperSens) during Mission Simulation #01485, the research team has come to the following results.
> 
> As can be seen from the data, the Sentinel and Guide subjects of the Trio 01 were impaired in their ability to ignore distracting information in their simulation involving their bond mate and dubious ethical choices. This is consistent with several results from functional neuroimaging, neurophysiological, and sensophysiological studies that demonstrate increases in neural activity and neural spiking in response to attended stressful events over ignored stimuli in sensory cortical regions. 
> 
> There were three unaccounted for results in this assessment. First, was significant decrease in performance and reaction time as compared to previous data from the subjects. This significant change is attributed to the subjects working in opposition rather than in unison. Second, the hybrid member of the triad, while not present in the room, interfered in the mission simulation by strongly projecting, possibly affecting results. Third, the mental fortitude of each individual increased exponentially, due to reduced inhibitions from the Sentinel subject. While the increased mental capability is exceptional, the increased mental vulnerability of both subjects remains concerning. As a result, the research team recommends against repetition of such an assessment due to health concerns.
> 
> Since this study was designed to test bond strength during trials and not HyperSens performance in stressful situations, it is possible that the subjects’ minds were taxed enough to manifest as decrease in reaction time across all trials. However, when only the more stable responses were taken into account, a robust effect was observed.
> 
> The analysis suggests measuring bond strength in isolation of performance simulation assessments.  
> 
> In conclusion, the Sentinel and Guide subjects of the Trio 01 showcase exceptional potential, and a fully realized triad bond may have unprecedented proficiency, despite unaccounted for consequences.

 

Hands, shaking, Allura sets the tablet down on her desk and closes her eyes. 

Damn.

She covers her face with a hand, fighting off the incoming guilt. In her rush to prove their tribond was valid, she’d overstepped and missed the mark. She had dismissed the Guide’s warnings, and as a result, sabotaged what could have been a solid partnership. She wanted the asset on her side, and instead lost the trust of the three people she wanted to learn from.

Her father, who valued all human worth and saw trust as the greatest gift, would be so disappointed in her. Hell, even Coran, her most trusted and loyal friend, had turned his back on her. How did she fall so far?

Allura vows to shed her harsh persona and prove to the people under her care that she respects and cares for all of them. 

Getting Keith back would be a good place to start.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

As Lotor finishes making his note, he thanks Hunk. 

“The intel you got us through that wristband research has been a huge help. Now we can more accurately read bondings. Dismissed.”

Makenzie begins to move the unresponsive boy and put him on the stretcher, but Hunk steps in, pulling Keith into his arms and lifting him without a problem. He eyes Lotor as he steps out, daring him to comment, but Lotor turns to review the results. Hunk carries Keith all the way back to the room, putting aside his unhappiness at the situation and distracting himself by tending to him. Once Keith is in bed, he pulls up a chair and waits for the boy. Surprisingly, it’s only a few minutes later when Keith returns to himself. He’s weak and clearly shaken by today’s events, but he wordlessly reaches a hand out to Hunk in search of comfort.

“It’s alright, Keith. You know I’m here for you.”

Keith nods, but can’t yet speak. He closes his eyes and squeezes Hunk’s hand.

That’s when Hunk makes his decision. For the first time, he’s going to break the rules. Lotor has had enough power, and seems to have lost sight of their objective. Or, really, Lotor is just focused on his own objective. 

“Keith. I think you’re an inspiring guy.”

Right as the words leave his mouth, Hunk widens his eyes. Shoot, that was not how that was supposed to come out. Before he can try again, Keith beats him to it.

“Um, thanks?” His voice is hoarse, but his eyes are clear, and right now, giving Hunk a weird look.

“Wait, no, I meant. You inspire me. You just put up with so much. And you just want to get home to your soul mates.”

“I dunno, Hunk. Most days I just feel like giving up. I’ve learned that hopes and wishes are cruel lies.”

“Oh, wow, um… okay I can see how Lance fell for you so quick. He loves trying to help the broken ones. But uh, are you alright? You were screaming.”

Keith grimaces, and Hunk feels a little sorry about pestering him about it, but he’s worried. Keith honestly looks like death.

“It was horrible.” Keith raises his hands to his face, covering his eyes as he recalls the despair and the hopelessness and the wreckage after. “Shiro and Lance were in some sort of test, only it was awful. They were put against each other.”

Hunk’s eyes widen. “But, I thought HyperSens were trained to work in pairs. What good does it do them to work against one another?”

Breath hitching, Keith tries to keep down the sob building in his throat. “To traumatize them. Lance tried to make the ultimate sacrifice.” Hunk gasps, and Keith reaches out blindly to grab his hand and squeeze. “I know. I’m hoping Shiro saved him, but when I reached for them they weren’t there anymore. I don’t know what happend. I have to assume he’s okay.”

“God that’s....I’m so sorry Keith. Damn! And Lotor was poking around in there at the same time! Grr this whole thing is making me angry.”

Hunk stands abruptly, hands clenched into fists, and Keith looks up in shock.

“Hunk?”

“I don’t know what Lotor is up to, but I think it’s time I start thinking for myself and not get too swayed by whatever agenda he’s got going.”

Smiling, Hunk looks down at Keith, who looks back at him with wide eyes. Keith is speechless, so Hunk continues.

“I want to do something for you. You rest here a second. I will be right back.”

As Hunk exits, a large orange creature pops into existence. Keith gives a watery smile as the wolf-fox whines. He pats the bed next to him, and his guardian spirit jumps up, then wraps around him with its huge tail. 

“You’re still here. Even after everything is gone. Thank you.” He buries his face in the soft fur, and the canine licks his face.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Head pounding, Lance tries to open his eyes. His lids flutter, but it’s like the lights on are too bright, and his eyes burn. He whimpers instead.

“Babe, take it easy. You’re going to be fine.”

Lance relaxes, not trying to fight the dizziness making his head heavy. His head is pounding, and although he can’t remember exactly what happened, he knows better than to risk pushing himself right now. But one thing is for sure, he’s drained. Not even just mentally. He’s physically drained. It’s a bone-deep fatigue that delays his thoughts and actions. Lance lets himself float, focusing on breathing and pulling himself to the here and now. After a minute Lance registers the warm hand cradling his face, and the cool metal one resting gently on his chest, right over his heart.

“Everything’s going to be alright.” Shiro’s voice is soft. A pleasant sound that seems to wrap him up and cocoon him, protecting him from dangers. Lance stops trying to get feeling in his extremities, and lets his thoughts play soft images of Shiro embracing him, cuddling him, kissing him…

Cold on his face makes him jerk into alertness. He opens his eyes in shock. At first, all he can see is Shiro’s chin, head bowed over Lance’s. His shoulders are shaking.

“I won’t let anything happen to you, Lance.”

Another drop of cold on his cheek. Lance tracks his eyes along Shiro’s chiseled jaw. A tear falls from his clenched eyes, and joins the ones drying on Lance’s face. Mindlessly, Lance lifts a weak hand. He doesn’t have to force anything, it moves on its own. He can’t quite manage to reach his Guide’s face, but his hand brushes Shiro’s hand, the one laying on his cheek. Shiro twitches, eyes widening. There’s a second of stillness, then Shiro sobs, picking up Lance’s hand in both of his large ones.

“I-I can’t- it was too-”

“Shhh. I’m right here, Shiro.”

Shiro bows over him, as if rendered weak, as if stuck down by some godly being. His shoulders hunch and his back bends. The sight makes Lance’s eyes water. Seeing his Guide like this. So broken.

Lance forces his tongue to work again. He needs to be here for him. He needs to comfort. To protect. To love.

“I’m here. We’re both here. Whatever it takes to get Keith, yes? That was our deal.”

Wordlessly, Shiro gathers him up and carries him back to their room.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

As promised, Hunk returns quickly. The wolf-fox moves to Keith’s other side as he comes to sit on the bed beside Keith and gestures towards Keith’s left hand. “Can I?”

Keith nods, and Hunk pulls out a slim wristband from his pocket. He starts clipping it on to Keith’s wrist, and the boy stutters.

“W-wait. Is this-?”

Hunk smiles and nods. “Yup. It’s a Facility wristband. Or, at least my duplicate of it. Mine’s a way superior model with all sorts of cool features, but it still interacts with their OS. Here, let me show you.”

He holds Keith’s wrist in one large hand as he taps through buttons. “These are the main three buttons you’ll be using. This one shows your stats, both physical and mental. Next, this one pulls up the internet and lets you look up pretty much anything. And this one,” Hunk grins, “this is the messaging application.”

He releases Keith’s hand, watching him expectantly as Keith connects the dots. It’s slow going for a second. Keith is both mentally and physically exhausted. And from Hunk’s research on the matter, some of what he’s feeling might be residual from whatever ordeal Lance and Shiro went through.

“Wait… you mean...I could message them?” The hope is raw on Keith’s face, and Hunk feels even more secure in the knowledge that he’s doing the right thing. Technically, he’s breaking protocol. Lotor asked him to mirror and integrate with the Facility systems. He said nothing about physically recreating one, much less using it for non-approved actions. But, Hunk is nothing if not prepared, and told himself he’d only use it in an emergency. Well, the livelihood of three people counted in his book.

“Yup. Go ahead. This button will make a group conversation so you can message both.”

Keith’s fingers hover over the holoscreen above his wristband. His brow furrows in contemplation. Then, decided, he types three words.  
  


 

**“Hi. It’s Keith.”**

  
  


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on Tumblr! [Nutella0Mutt](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/)  
> The next chapter will be all healing, I promise! <3  
> Again, thanks for your patience! See you next month!
> 
> While you wait for G&G updates, be sure to check out my ABO soulmate fic [It's All In the Eyes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14334357) that I wrote with [Punkinpinkglitter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunkInPinkGlitter/pseuds/PunkInPinkGlitter), and the new werewolf fic [Falling to the Wolves](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15055028) that I wrote with [Eunioa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eunioa/pseuds/Eunioa)!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Operation: Save Keith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awesome art at the end!

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Later that night, Lance is resting on the couch with Shiro, legs sprawled in his Guide’s lap. Shiro had finally convinced Lance to nibble on some crackers and take a few sips of soup. Not quite ready to sleep, Lance had asked if they could just sit. Shiro explained his choice to pull them from both the mindscape, something previously never heard of.

“I don’t know what came over me. All I knew was that it was too much for you. You were zoning and suffering, and I needed it to all STOP.”

Lance gulps and he sees the haunted expression on Shiro face, but doesn’t stop him. Shiro is reliving the moment. Best to let it happen.

“Then Keith was there, burning right and worried, and just trying to get to you. He was terrified. I had...to push him away. For your safety, you understand?”

Shiro looks at him imploringly. Lance nods his agreement.

“I understand Shiro, and thank you. You had to do it to protect all three of us. Now we need to figure out how to get back there.”

Being cut from the mindscape meant no dreams, no communication, no HyperSens abilities. When Lance felt up to it, they would do talk to Pidge and Dave and see what could be done to rebuild their worlds with the least possible strain.

Shiro is just about to suggest turning in for the night when when the message comes. Both their wristbands ping, confusing them.

“What?”

“Wait, you got it, too?”

The look Lance gives Shiro makes his heart pound. There’s fear there. The Facility only contacts them for certain things. Especially since they had both thought Lance’s wristband to be defective.

The open the notification at the same time.

Lance gasps, hand flying to his mouth. Shiro feels dizzy. 

“Is this...Keith?!”

“I think I’m going to faint.”

 “Shiro?!”

Shiro goes to stand, and wobbles. Lance tries to get up and support him, but he’s still weak from earlier, and as Shiro topples he brings Lance down with him. They fall to the plush carpet.

Lance laughs breathlessly, and Shiro covers his face with a hand and groans. Lance catches his breath and turns to look at Shiro, reaching a hand out. He’s not sure if he wants to comfort or squeeze in joy.

“You alright?” Lance asks, concerned by the look on Shiro’s face.

“God, if this is a prank…”

Lance pauses, hand frozen in midair. “Oh. I uh didn’t think of that.”

His voice catches, and Shiro must pick up on the tone of it because he rolls and tries to give Lance a reassuring smile. “I mean, hopefully it really is him.” He looks back down at his wrist. “But this is a feature these never had before.”

“What if it’s another one of Allura’s tests?”

Shiro’s growl is startling. One moment he was all smiles, but at the mention of Allura Shiro suddenly pulls a 180. Lance stares at him with wide eyes as he pushes himself back upright.

“I’ll kill her.”

He makes for the door.

“Wait! Shiro, ugh, wait!" 

Willing his legs to work, Lance lurches up. But he overcorrects and tilts sideways into the couch. Shiro returns to his side in an instant, grabbing Lance’s hand to ease him back down. “Be careful, love, ” he chides Lance.

Lance brushes Shiro’s hands away, trying and failing to hide his blush.

 “I’m fine. But, just wait a second. We don’t know if it’s Allura. Or Zarkon. And we shouldn’t tell anyone. Let’s just keep this between us.”

 Shiro looks like he wants to argue, but he sighs and sits down next to Lance, wrapping him up in an embrace. He tucks Lance’s head in under his chin.

 “Okay. Alright. We’ll do it your way. What should be our reply?”

 Lance weasels his arm out. He taps the message open again, and a holographic keyboard pops up. He takes a deep breath.

 “Well, let’s hope for the best and assume the worst?”

 “Maybe we can ask him questions only Keith would know?”

 “But would we know the answer? He was taken from us so soon.”

 Shiro hums. “I have an idea.”

 He reaches for his own wristband and opens up the keyboard. 

 

**S: “What’s up, mullet?”**

 

Lance looks up at Shiro in shock.

“What the hell?” 

The reply is quick.

 

**K: “...Lance?”**

**K: “Hunk is apologizing for the glitch.”**

**K: “He says he must have made a mistake.”**  


Lance gasps. “Oh my god. OH MY GOD! He’s with Hunk?!

 

**L: “Hunk is with you? Are you 2 okay?!”**

 

**K: “Yes. I wanted to ask the same thing.”**

**K: “Our bond seems broken.”**

**K: “I miss you.”**  


Shiro inhales roughly.

 

**S: “I’m sorry. I had to do it for Lance.”**

**S: “We have to fix it.”**

 

Lance turns to him. “We need to tell him about the danger he’s in. We only have a week.”

The face Shiro gives him in lieu of a response sends a chill down his spine.

“Actually, Lance. About that…”

“Shiro.”

“Pidge came while you were out.”

 “We don’t have a week anymore. Allura’s test. It... We-”

 He cuts himself off, then hangs his head.

Lance holds his breath.

“It’s damaged, Lance. We have three days.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Keith doesn’t sleep well that night. Pleasant dreams don’t find him. Not only was it the constant uncertainty from being in Lotor’s warehouse, namely the stress from being in an unfamiliar location with untrustworthy people, but now he couldn’t connect to his bondmates. He had no idea what had happened to Lance. Was everything okay back home?

 And on top of everything, he’s still riding high from the examination. Whatever happened in that room, it was exhausting. Keith never wants to go through that ordeal ever again. It felt way too invasive and inappropriate. 

Keith yearns to be back at the Facility with Shiro and Lance. He wants to spend lazy days building their bonds, getting to know each other better. And hopefully, eventually, getting to be intimate again.

In the chill of the room, Keith recalls hazy memories of being held in warm arms. Sensations of falling, but being caught. Being loved and embraced. He was half delirious at the time, but Keith wishes he could experience it all again on his own terms. Keith knows he is not as close with Shiro and Lance as they are with each other, but he hopes they will want to try again with him.

Cheeks flushing, Keith buries his head in his pillow.

But a tiny, ugly seed of doubt tries to weasel its way into his mind. It wants to tell Keith that he’s broken. That the other two just needed a distraction, and took the first opportunity they could. Keith squashes it. He’s too tired to deal with that right now.

At the very least, he can message them tomorrow, and try to ease some of his fears.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Lance, good to see you’re well." 

“Hi, Pidge. You know why we’re here.”

Pidge’s lab is the same bland design as the rest of the Facility, but it’s beginning to feel a little more welcoming. Maybe it’s all the time they are spending here. Or maybe it’s Pidge herself, one of the few allies they have now.

She waves them over to a comfortable-looking chair. “You need to rebuild your mental worlds. Unfortunately you have a limited time to do it. I recommend the three of you focus on rebuilding one a day. Otherwise the drain might be too much. The catch here is that the first person has to do it alone. Only then can the second person be helped along. Since you've all bonded, the third must be done by all of you together.”

Lance and Shiro give each other a look. With Keith not present, it will be harder to communicate with him about how to complete the bonding.

Pidge continues. “Shiro, you’re the Guide so you’ll need to go first. Then you’ll pave the way for Lance, and then your hybrid. If all goes well, you three will be stronger than ever. Shiro, lean back. We want you to feel relaxed.”

Shiro closes his eyes and leans back in the lounge chair, but reaches out a hand, which Lance takes and squeezes. Pidge doesn’t comment, and moves to stand by Shiro’s head.

“Now, don’t focus so much on trying to create things. This is more about reconstructing a memory. Think of a calming place. What does it sound like? Feel like? What scents can you smell? What would be the perfect weather to go with this place? Imagine how that feels on your skin. And finally, the energy. Can you taste it in the air? Where is the power emanating from? The ground? The sky? Now, focus.”

 When Shiro opens his eyes he’s in a vast empty abyss. But it’s not an unwelcome one. He lets Pidge’s words flow over him, and gets to work. Sounds are muted and soft, like he’s underwater. The sharp tang of evergreens blow past, tinged with a chill that seems to bring everything to life. Snowflakes fall onto his bare skin and bring a smile to Shiro’s face. There’s a nip in the air, and as Shiro chuckles, elated, his breath fogs. Shiro turns, hands outstretched, taking it all in. A dusting of snow covers the forest, quiet and peaceful and still. He crouches to cup a handful of light snow between his hands, and feels at home. Shiro gives into the pull and throws himself back, arms and legs stretched wide, laughing as he makes a clumsy snow angel. The sky above him is full of dancing snowflakes and flurries, falling like rain but landing like feathers. 

A warm body lies heavily on his, rumbling a happy purr. Shiro lifts his flesh hand and pets the soft fur of his guiding spirit, letting his fingers comb through the underfur and scratching behind the ears. Man and spirit bask in the peace and harmony. Balanced at last 

All too soon a nudge from the outside world catches his attention, and Shiro sits up. When he blinks his eyes open, Lance is hugging him, and behind him Pidge his holding her tablet, a smile on her face. 

“Mindscape successfully rebuilt. Congrats. How does it feel?”

Shiro smiles back. “Like heaven.”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

There’s a knock on the door, and Coran pops his head in. “Allura, the Blades have information to report.”

 “Please, let them in.”

 Her agents Kolivan and Antok enter. They cut right to the chase.

“We found the boy.”

 Allura jumps up from her seat. “Excellent! This is wonderful news! When can we retrieve him?”

“Lotor has him. We need to extract him carefully as to not start any...drama with the Anti HyperSens groups.”

Falling back into her chair, Allura hums. “Hmm, yes, you’re right. They’ll likely go public with dirt against us soon enough, but the less we antagonize them the better.”

Antok steps forward. “We believe we can rescue him in three days." 

The air in the room suddenly seems heavy. Allura closes her eyes against the onslaught of emotions running through her.

“Three days. By then it might be too late.”

“Yes.” Kolivan straightens up. His expression is neutral and gives nothing away.

Allura sighs. “Very well. Do what you must and keep me updated.”

Kolivan and Antok bow and leave. 

A few minutes of peace is all Allura gives herself before she grabs her tablet and stands. It’s time for her to make her apology. She leaves her office and begins her search for Shiro and Lance. 

She catches them outside of Pidge’s office.

“I hope everything went well with the mindspace reconstruction?” She asks, trying to maintain her mask of professionalism.

Shiro crosses his arms and Lance purses his lips, unwilling to speak to her. Understandable. She sighs and relaxes her expression. Allura is beginning to realize that she needs to be the one with the olive branch.

“Ah, very well, let me just say my part briefly and apologize. I’m sorry for my treatment of you two during the assessment. I was...well… my actions were inexcusable. You two trusted me to help you, and instead I made a selfish choice that cost you dearly. It will never happen again.”

 “It better not,” Shiro growls. “Unless you want to get close and personal with a window like Sendak.”

Allura gulps. “Uh, well, I do have some good news. We’ve located Keith.”

 A sob escapes Lance before he can stop it, and he claps his hands to his face. Happy tears run down his face. Shiro has him in a hug before Lance can even turn to him, and they hold one another.

“Unfortunately, it will take three days to get him out, and I have no idea what state he is in. He may be...worse off than we think.”

Shiro stiffens, then pulls back from Lance. The two exchange a look. They seem to have a silent conversation. Shiro shrugs his shoulders, and puts a hand on Lance’s shoulder. Lance nods then takes a breath, looking at Allura.

“You seem sincere, so we will trust you one more time. This will be your last opportunity to make it up to us, so chose wisely.”

Allura straightens. “I understand. I will do whatever I can to earn back your trust. We will need to work together if we want to get Keith back safely. What information do you have.”

Lance gives Shiro one last look. Shiro stands behind him and puts his other hand on Lance’s shoulder in a silent show of support. Shiro gestures to Lance’s armband, and Lance lifts it with a sigh.

“I’ve been in communication with Keith. He’s alright. My friend Hunk is a part of the Anti Hypersens group, and helped make it so we can message each other." 

To her credit, Allura does not let the shock show on her face. “Then we are very fortunate for your friend. We will ensure he remains unharmed when we extract Keith, but I suggest your friend finds a new hobby.”

Lance manages a watery smile. “Noted.” His expression turns somber again. “I don’t think he knows, though. About the deadline.”

 “Keith? Well, I’m not sure if telling him would be a good idea at this point. We don’t want his condition to deteriorate due to stress. But he’s your bonded so I’ll let you decide. But please prepare yourself for the worse-case scenario. Best to steel your heart against disappointment.”

Allura steps back and turns to leave when Shiro speaks up. “What will you do when we find him? Will you trap him here again?”

She looks over her shoulder, face determined. “I think it’s time the Altean HyperSens Facility reconsiders their stance on the ownership of Hyper Sens. We might have relationships with both the public and our HyperSens if we grant them their autonomy.”

 With that she’s gone, and both Shiro and Lance release held breaths.

“Well, she seemed to be actually sorry,” Lance ventures.

Shiro steps around Lance and links their fingers together, tugging gently until Lance falls into step next to him.

As they walk Shiro tentatively speaks up. “How much of that do you think is true, though. The bit about freeing HyperSens. That almost seems too good.”

Lance shakes his head. This whole thing was becoming way more complicated than he had anticipated. Lance expected his life at the Facility to be rigorous training, not pouring over people’s words in search of double meanings and trying to decide who was trustworthy or not. “We just need to play along and make her happy until we get Keith. Then we can start pushing buttons. I don’t want my big mouth to be the reason we lose him.”

 Lance slows until he comes to a stop and hangs his head. “It’s been six days since he was taken from us. We have three more until he’s gone completely. I don’t-”

Big hands cup his face, and Shiro bends to place a kiss on Lance’s forehead. “Everything will be fine. We just need to stay calm and focus on getting everything ready for him. Don’t stress about Allura. I’ll handle her.”

Then Shiro lifts Lance’s face and places a chaste kiss on his lips. Just as he pulls away Lance surges up and steals another. Lance can feel Shiro’s smile against his.

“What do you need, love?” Shiro whispers against Lance’s skin.

“I want to get lost in you,” Lance whispers back. “And I want it to be so good Keith feels it, too." 

Shiro chuckles and leads them back to their room.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

That night Shiro takes him slow, roots him in the here and now, and makes Lance feel loved and cherished. All night long Lance drowns in pleasure. It’s joy and relief and release, and Lance desperately needed it.

He’s still unsteady being a solo entity separate from Keith and Shiro. Lance used to bask the solitude of his own mind, away from prying minds and annoying Guides he had to partner with. Away from the arrogant HyperSens that walked all over his mindscape without a care, crushing fragile animals and spoiling the clean water. But Shiro had been the breeze that brought in the sun and the salt and the _life_ , and made Lance’s secret world better. He saw Lance’s space as sacred, and worshipped it with him. Lance feels like he could write books about why Shiro is amazing, and now he gets to write a new chapter.

The come together as one. Shiro, while unable to reassure Lance through their mental connection, solidifies his presence within Lance in the physical world. He helps Lance forget the cruelty in the world, even if only for a night. 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

The next morning Pidge and Shiro walk Lance through his redesign, helping him put it all back together piece by piece. Lance envisions crystal clear water, crisp and cool. He trails his fingers through the water and little fish nibble on his fingers. Lance giggles at the tickling sensation, the fish darting away as he jerks his hand, and then returning, curiously nibbling again. Vibrant tropical plants bend and sway under the spray of water splashing from the small waterfall. Shy animals peek out from among the leaves to drink from the lake, and exotic birds and bugs sing melodies that fill the air with music. Bright flowers smelling of heaven fight to overpower each other, and the result is a sweet perfume that tantalizes the tongue. Paradise.

Lance can’t help himself. He steps into the pool, reveling in the freedom and peace. He can’t wait to share this space with his bonded. A splash catches Lance’s attention, and he looks up curiously. His tiger is happily splashing in the water, and when she sees Lance watching, she dives for him, sending water spraying everywhere. Lance lifts his arms to hug his silly guiding spirit.

“I guess we really are kindred spirits. Thanks for being here, you pretty thing.”

His tiger gives him an unimpressed look and throws herself at him, sending them both underwater.

When Lance surfaces, he’s back in Pidge’s room, a smile still on his face.

Afterwards, snuggled together on the couch, they message Keith, asking how he’s feeling. He avoids the question, but says he misses them.

Lance and Shiro try not to worry too much. Soon, he’ll be back with them, and they can ease all his hurts.

Before he sleeps for the night, Shiro messages Keith that he’ll be saved tomorrow. They have friends coming to rescue him.

The message remains unread throughout the night. 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 The third day looms like a fog. Allura is tense, constantly looking at her tablet for updates and snappish when they ask her about the status of retrieval.

“I’m watching as closely as I can, gentlemen. This is a very delicate operation.”

 Lance leans back, upset, and Allura sighs.

“I’m sorry. It’s all going smoothly, but everything’s been planned to the minute and I need to be here to make the split second decisions. As soon as I have something of substance I’ll contact you immediately.” It’s clear she’s been up early. Lance is suddenly curious to know when the mission began. This morning? Or was it last night?  Allura stands and rubs her eyes before offering a tired smile to the duo. “Why don’t you two head to Pidge’s lab and see about repairing his mindscape. We need him to be in tip top condition before collecting him.”

With nothing else to do, they retreat to Pidge’s lab. She welcomes them with a somber look.

“Well, today’s the day. The two of you will need to guide him through his own rebuilding. It’s essential that it’s completed as soon as possible.”

She waves them to the lounge chairs and Lance reaches for Shiro’s hand as they sit. They close their eyes and search with their mind. They are perfectly in sync. 

It’s hard to find Keith. They have no lead, and the spot where they last saw him is cold and empty. They try calling for him, then try to lure him to them. Nothing. 

Shiro feels himself getting concerned, but Lance renews his hope.

_He’s fine, Shiro. We’ll find him._

But they don’t. Hours later and his thread of the bond is dead.

Shiro’s ready to give up.

 _It’s too late Lance._  

_No! I won’t give up. Not this close!_

An idea comes to Lance. He starts calling a different mind to his.

Shiro is confused.

But then there’s a whimper. The once proud wolf-fox is laying on it’s side. It looks starved. It’s likely been unable to feed off Keith’s mind. Keith...might be in the same state.

Lance kneels by the creature’s head. He runs a hand through the dirty fur, red shine dulled and sullied. 

 _Please. Help us find him._  

It whimpers, hurt.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Mindspaces void of lush imagery are black. The empty mind is an endless dark gray stretching on and on, without shadow or atmosphere to change the tone. There’s no hot or cold or sensation. They find Keith in the darkest coldest corner, somehow against all the rules they know. It dawns on them that this was his attempting at making a new space for himself. He had no guidance or support, clawing out a spot for himself out of desperation. Keith hasn’t sensed their approach. Lance knees, but does not yet reach out. Keith has his knees up, arms wrapped tight around them, and face buried. His hair hides his face. He looks lost and scared, and Lance is terrified that if he touches Keith, he’ll shatter. Shiro crouches next to Lance, unsure how to bridge the few feet between them. It feels like miles.

Someone make the decision for them. The wolf-fox limps slowly over to Keith, and nuzzles his arm. Keith doesn’t react, and the beast whimpers, nudging harder. Keith moves, but only to curl in on himself tighter.

“Keith,” Shiro tries to say, but his voice cracks. He tires again. “Keith.”

“We’re here, Keith.” Lance ties to keep his tone light and pleasant instead of crying. “We’ve come to help you.”

There’s still no reaction. It’s like Keith can’t even hear them. Maybe he thinks it’s a false dream. Still, Shiro’s got to try.

“Alright Keith, just listen to my voice. We’re re to help you rebuild your mind space. All you need to do is follow along. Please try. We don’t have very long. You’re...fading from us. But we have friends coming to rescue you. Soon you’ll be in our arms again. Just, stay strong for us, okay?”

Lance sniffles, trying to keep his tears at bay. “F-first, imagine a place of peace and safety. What does it smell like? What does is sound like? Can you feel it? Taste it? A blanket of safety and security. What does your heart dream of, Keith?”

At first, there’s nothing. Shiro and Lance wait with baited breath, eager for some change or sign Keith’s heard. It’s a minute or two before Lance sighs, leaning into Shiro for support. But then the ground under their knees warm slightly, and the black nothingness under them dissolves into warm sand. It starts slowly, under them, but spreads out. A sun rises into existence, burning bright and hot, baking them. Shiro feels sweat start to form on his skin.

“Keith. This is a place of refuge, not of pain. Make sure it’s what you seek.”

But the sun burns stronger, and the sand becomes almost too hot. 

“Keith!” 

“Shit, Shiro! Something’s wrong!”

Smoke starts filling the air. It has no source, but grows thicker and choking.

 “Lance, I don’t know what to do!”

 As one, they turn to Keith, arms outstretched. But his body gives out and he collapses, falling limply to the side. Then just as their fingers reach his feverish skin, he fades.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The next few minutes are a blur. Allura pings their wristbands, letting them know Keith has been retrieved, but sedated to keep his condition stable. He’s in a bad way, she says, but is currently on his way back to them.

They turn to Pidge, desperate for advice, but she shakes her head sadly. There isn’t much she can do. Keith’s body was relying on their mind sanctuaries to help him manage his HyperSens status, and breaking their mental connection had put him into withdrawl. The only good news is that once they reconnect, their new mind spaces will be even more better suited to helping day-to-day.

They just need him to wake up.

The lab doors bang open, and a stretcher rolls in, escorted by a harried-looking Allura, Coran, and Kolivan’s security team, still in their dark body suits. Shiro runs over, Lance on his heels, narrowing avoiding the medical personnel that come running in. Keith is still and pale. He’s got bandages on his arms and neck, sickly-looking bruises from his rough treatment. Keith is just as thin as he was when he was kidnapped. The medics get to work stabilizing his vitals. Pidge interrupts their panicking and yanks them over to Keith’s head.

“It’s now or never, boys! This is your last chance to save him!”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

When they sync their minds, Lance can feel Shiro start to pull them both towards Keith’s in hopes of making headway repairing his mindscape. But Lance has an idea. He stops Shiro with a hand to his chest, and focuses his senses. Lance hasn’t used his HyperSens abilities like this in a mindscape before. He’s not sure it’s possible, but he has to try.

Lance first seeks out Keith’s heartbeat. It’s faint and slow, but it’s there. Lance focuses on it, projecting it louder until it’s beating loud all around them. Shiro looks on in shock, in disbelief that he can hear the heartbeat, too.

_Shiro I need your help. I think we can reach is heart. We can give him the energy he needs but you need to channel it for me, okay?_

  _Lance, I’ve never done anything like this before. I don’t even think I can!_

  _Please. We have to try!_

 It’s almost unnoticeable at first. Lance feels a pull, slowly draining him. He begins to feel weak, but Lance stubbornly refuses to bend. Instead he focuses on maintain his link to Keith. Shiro pants softly as he spreads his arms, channeling the twin  currents of energy he’s drawing from himself and Lance. They glow like sparklers, Shiro’s has a faint purple hue and Lance’s is blue. Shiro makes them spin and dance in his hands, encouraging them to merge into one bright white stream. The brighter is burns the weaker the boys feel.

_It’s time, Lance._

Lance reaches out for the light, and closes his mind’s eye, envisioning Keith’s fading heartbeat and urging the energy to find that dying spark of life. It’s gone from Lance’s hands like lightning, shooting out and spiking off. The sudden absence of it leave Lance breathless. He gasps. 

His knees buckle and he falls. Shiro collapses next to him. It’s all Lance can do to pull them from their joined minds and drag them back to the present. 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

“Commander, there’s an alert of an incoming threat. Scans suggest we evacuate.”

Lotor stills, turning from his meeting. “Evacuate?” He chuckles. “There’s hardly reason to do such a dire thing. We’re well-protected here. Dismiss the alarms and continue as planned.”

The messenger balks, but is saved from having to convince her superior by the arrival of the rest of the security team.

“Sir, it’s…”

“Well, spit it out. Who is such a big deal that we need to leave?”

“It’s Zarkon.”

The good-humored smile on Lotor’s face turns sour. “My father. Well, that is a bigger deal than I expected.” Lotor puts his tablet down and leans his hands on the table. Hundreds of calculations and moves run through his head.

“Moved the armed fighters to the front. Have the technician and engineers begin barricading. I want our computers packed and ready to go. Divert our power to the weapons.”

People begin running to put his orders into place.

Lotor continues, deep in thought. “I need our assets secured. Our data backed-up. Oh, that new boy! I need him with me. I can use him as a bargaining chip. He’s likely the reason my father has come to pay us a visit.”

Another worker nods and talks quickly into the handheld radio. There’s a beat, and the worker turns back to Lotor.

“Uh, Commander, the boy is gone.”

Lotor raises himself from the table, shocked. “He’s gone? How?" 

“Not sure, no sign or forced entry, but his room is empty. We also can’t find the Hunk kid. Both are unaccounted for. Oh, and the RockDove. Three MIA total.”

There’s no time for Lotor to process that. A huge bang hits the main doors, and gun fire echos from outside.

Lotor grabs the radio. “Everyone to your stations and hold!”

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Lance sits up with a gasp. He’s on a cot next to Keith, who has been moved to a proper medical bed. Lance looks for Shiro and sees him on a similar bed on Keith’s other side. Both of the boys are unconscious, but peaceful in their sleep. Lance makes to stand but his legs are weak and he wobbles. Lance grits his teeth and shakily makes his way to his bond mates. There’s a chair in between the two beds, and Lance sits down heavily, grateful.

While the sight of his two most important people lying unconscious should make him sick with worry, Lance only feels contentedness. He closes his eyes to focus on their heartbeats, and is reassured by them both beating strong.

They did it.

One hand rests on Keith’s forehead, and the other rests on Shiro’s. He’s going to fix everything once and for all.

“Here goes nothing,” Lance mutters. And he connects their minds.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The first thing Lance sees is the sun. It’s not as burning as before. Now it’s actually quite pleasant. Warm and welcoming. Then Lance looks down and sees the sand, sun-warmed and pretty shade of rose he’s never seen in nature before.

_Lance!_

He turns to see Shiro waving at him. Under his arm his Keith, bracing himself on Shiro’s shoulder. He too gives a small wave.

 Lance runs to them both and tackles them.

_Keith! Oh my god we were so worried!_

Tears are very likely running down Lance’s face but he ignores them in favor of giving his boyfriends the biggest hug he can.

 _I love you both so much!_  

_Lance, Shiro, thank you for coming to save me._

That reminds Lance why he’s here, and he pulls back from probably the best hug of his life.

_Oh yeah, Keith, you’re not out of the woods yet. We need to rebuild your mindscape. You remember what I was telling you before? Use your senses to reconstruct a haven for yourself._

Keith reaches out a hand to both of his boyfriends and closes his eyes. Like before, smoke starts to rise. Shiro and Lance exchange a worried look. Shiro tries to help out. 

_Babe, think of a place with no pain. No fire, no burning, okay? A safe place._

Keith furrows his eyebrows in concentration. It seems like there’s no progress, until finally, a warm wind pick up. It starts slow at first, then increases in power, blowing the black smoke away and revealing a clear blue sky. 

Lance wants to cheer in victory, but Keith’s not done yet and he doesn’t want to ruin his concentration. So instead, Lance musters up some of his little remaining energy to aid Keith. He feels something touching his leg, and looks down, shocked to see jungle plants growing up from beneath his feet. Lance nudges Shiro, who followed the Sentinel's lead and also gave Keith some energy of his own. At the confused look he gets, Lance points down to their feet. Evergreens are trying to  sprout underneath Shiro. They are slow growing and nothing as impressive as Lance’s plants, but they are slowly but surely making their determined way up through the ground.

Both boys turn back to Keith, who has his eyes clenched still and hands out likely for balance or focus or both. Boulders emerge from the ground, and cacti start popping up, blooming with small flowers of pink and yellow. Mountains rise in the distance, hawks fly lazily overhead and call hauntingly across the open sky, tall stalks of golden grass grow and bend in the soft breeze that smells like earth. Keith’s wolf-fox comes running around a boulder, barking and yipping at a scorpion that scuttles away to hide under a bush.

It’s a desert.

Well, minus the cluster of jungle plants and the few evergreen trees that are now at chest height.

Keith lowers his hands and sways. Shiro gathers him up and lowers him gently, cuddling Keith carefully in his lap. With his free arm he pulls Lance in. They are quiet a moment, before a relieved sob escapes Keith. His smiling, happy tears running down his face. His guiding spirit trots over to lick away his tears. It’s a beautiful sight. Although… Lance thinks he can make it even better. He looks back at the strange plants growing out of place and gets an idea. This is Keith’s space, after all. The artificial HyperSens with the unique gift of both abilities. Lance closes his eyes and concentrates on Keith’s wounds, willing them away.

There’s a gasp from Shiro, and Lance feels a burst of satisfaction at his success. Keith’s wounds are all gone. Lance’s cheek stings, though, and he lifts his hand to ease the ache. There’s a strange cut there that wasn’t there before. Shiro looks at Lance, then back at Keith, who has just noticed his healed arms, and connects the dots. He gives Lance a gentle warning.

_Equivalent exchange, Lance. You need to be careful with that. Everything has a price._

Lance shrugs then snuggles back in under Shiro’s arm. He asks the question he’s been longing to ask.

_Keith’s world is built, with a few choice additions, and our minds are connected again. Are we ready to back, now?_

He gets a smile in return, and the three close their eyes and pull back to the physical world.  


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Commission by [yamirosenkreuz](http://yamirosenkreuz.tumblr.com/)!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Please like it [here](http://nutella0mutt.tumblr.com/post/176522761591/a-beautiful-commission-by-yamirosenkreuz-for).
> 
> Commission by [aneovi](http://aneovi.tumblr.com/)!!!  
> PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THEIR ART! Please like it [here](http://aneovi.tumblr.com/post/174066783019/a-commissioned-piece-for-nutella0mutts-fic).
> 
> And that’s the end of the first arc! They got Keith back, Lotor is busy with Zarkon, and Allura’s woke. Now the boys need learn how to hone their skills, Keith still needs to find out where he came from, and where did Hunk and the RockDove go? Find out more next month! I hope y’all like some action cuz that’s where we’re headed. Sorry if this chapter seemed rushed. I just wanted them to save Keith already lol
> 
> Again, while you wait for G&G updates, be sure to check out my ABO soulmate fic [It's All In the Eyes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14334357) that I wrote with [Punkinpinkglitter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunkInPinkGlitter/pseuds/PunkInPinkGlitter), and the new werewolf fic [Falling to the Wolves](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15055028) that I wrote with [Eunioa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eunioa/pseuds/Eunioa)!
> 
> I love each and every one of you for sticking with me so far!
> 
> Beta'd by [Roundabout](https://archiveofourown.org/users/roundabout/pseuds/roundabout) and [Punkinpinkglitter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunkInPinkGlitter/pseuds/PunkInPinkGlitter)! <3 Ty my lovelies!


	17. Hiatus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not a chapter, sorry. Just a heads up that I'll be taking a break from this fic for a while.

Sorry guys, I'm losing my motivation for this story. I'm a different writer than I was in 2016, and it's hard to continue a story that was set up much differently from how I like to write now. I also feel people aren't a fan of it anymore.

So for now I'm marking it as complete, and will focus on my other stories. I'll be posting the fantasy au that was going to be in the NSFW Big Bang. Just waiting on the cover art. :)

Maybe I'll come back to this later. But just in case, it's been real. Thanks for everyone who left a nice comment. Thanks to the die hards that have been reading from the start, and the newbies who left a comment on every chapter. I can't wait for you guys to see what I got next.

See ya around,

Jay / Nutella0Mutt


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